A Tracy by any other name
by grnfield
Summary: The Tracy family is thrown into turmoil when shocking news is received that could change one brother's life forever.
1. Chapter 1

A Tracy By Any Other Name by Emma Nisbet (grnfield)

**Authors Note: This is my first Thunderbirds story although I have been writing Stargate for several years. This story simply wouldn't go away and insisted that I sit down and type it up!**

**It is probably mainly set in TV-verse apart from the addition of Onaha who I have borrowed from the movie (because I needed a female character and Grandma was just too old, bless her heart!)**

**A word of warning before you start reading: my Tracy boys appear to have turned out rather neurotic! I don't think this is in a bad way and I truly believe that losing their mother at a young age, being raised by a somewhat eclectic group of people, isolated from the outside world and then being made to risk their lives day after day would have a profound effect on the psyches of the five boys.**

**Oh yes, one last point. As is obvious from the above, I call them the Tracy 'boys'. They are all grown men but from a parent's point of view they are - and always will be - Jeff's 'boys'.**

**Usual disclaimer applies: if you recognise anyone the chances are they were thought up and developed by Gerry Anderson. If you don't recognise them then they are probably mine!**

**Enough with all that now! I hope you enjoy the story…**

~#~ (Chapter 1)

"Post's here, Father," Scott announced quietly as he walked into Jeff's office, using his right knee to push the door open due to the fact that his hands were full of mail. "Looks like Gordon's got another stack of girly fan-mail, as per usual. Your book has arrived and there's a very official looking letter here for John."

Jeff looked up as his eldest son entered the room. "Scott, good morning. I didn't hear the plane."

"Yes, it was here early today. Eric's mother is in hospital so he set out earlier than normal to get back earlier and sit with her." Scott handed the brown-paper parcel to Jeff while still looking at the envelope that was addressed 'For the personal attention of Mr J. G. Tracy'. "The return address says it's come from…" Scott paused as he tilted his head - and the letter - towards the bright morning sun that was streaming through the window, in order to read the tiny print on the back of the envelope. "Why Father, it says it's from Hines & Huberts Solicitors in Tasmania. What on earth would someone in Tasmania want with our resident Spaceman?"

Jeff shook his head. "I don't know, Scott. I don't recollect John ever mentioning visiting there and it's not for you to speculate nor discuss with the others. I'll open it after breakfast and then relay the contents to Thunderbird 5 if it's relevant. It's probably just another one of those crackpots who's taken something out of one of John's books way too seriously and feels the need to get in touch with him. I can quite understand now, how come some of the more prominent writers of this world have ended up with a long list of restraining orders against their so called fans."

Scott merely nodded slowly before pursing his lips and letting out a quite 'Hmmm'. As he dropped the envelope gently onto Jeff's desk he couldn't help thinking that there was more to its contents than just a simple letter from a crackpot fan. Catching sight of the postmark he couldn't help but comment, "The letter was posted over a week ago, Father."

Jeff looked up from where he was carefully slicing open the packaging on the book that he'd ordered. "Yes, Scott, I can see that for myself, thank you very much. You know as well as I do that the mail-plane only drops off here once a week. Another couple of hours of that letter being unopened are going to do no-one any harm at all. Now…" With a flourish he finally freed the book from its wrappings and placed it carefully in the centre of his desk, twisting it until it was perfectly aligned with the edge of the blotter pad. "Let's go see what wonders Onaha has cooked up for breakfast and you can deliver Gordon's…" Jeff paused as Scott wafted the pile of pastel coloured envelopes in front of his face. The eldest Tracy brother smirked as his father rolled his eyes before murmuring 'God save me' before continuing in his usual speaking voice, "You can deliver Gordon's perfumed love letters to him. That boy never ceases to amaze me!"

~#~

After a wonderful breakfast and a great deal of teasing of Gordon by Scott and Virgil, Jeff finally returned to his office. He fully intended to take a look through his new book before starting the ever-present pile of paperwork in his in tray but as he sat down his eye was drawn to the letter for John that Scott had left on the desk. He picked it up and turned it over before shaking his head and reaching for his gilt-covered letter opener. Even though John had asked his father to open any post that arrived for him while he was on rotation in Thunderbird 5 Jeff had never been entirely comfortable with doing so, although it had proved prudent on the occasions when John had received official documents regarding his writing career.

The letter opener sliced cleanly through the envelope and Jeff removed the contents. As he opened up the folded papers several photographs fluttered out and came to rest on top of the book. He immediately dropped the letter to the desk and gathered the pictures back up so they couldn't fall on the floor and become damaged. He looked through them as he picked them up and felt a cold shudder run through his whole body. Quickly he snatched the letter back up from the desk and began reading.


	2. Chapter 2

~#~ (Chapter 2)

Scott and Virgil sat on the floor at either end of the pool heckling Gordon during his morning swim, while Alan and Tin-Tin sat side by side on a sun lounger laughing over the articles in the latest edition of Tin-Tin's favourite celebrity magazine. It had been unusually quiet on the rescue front in the last couple of weeks and the family were making the most of the impromptu downtime knowing that, at some point in the near future, their peace would be shattered and they would be needed to risk their lives once more for the people of Earth.

None of them were particularly surprised when the quiet space around the pool was suddenly disturbed by the bleeping of four wrist-comm units. Alan, Virgil and Scott immediately raised their left arms up to see the concerned face of their father looking back at them. Gordon launched himself out of one end of the pool and peered over Virgil's shoulder, dripping copious amounts of water down his elder brother's back as he did so. Virgil turned to castigate the wet red-head but, once their father began to speak, he forgot his ire and began to feel worried instead.

"Scott, Alan, I need you to prepare Thunderbird 3 for immediate launch. Alan, I'm sorry but I'm going to have to ask you to go back up to Thunderbird 5." Jeff's voice came clearly over the wrist-comms, along with the obvious stress imbedded in the Tracy patriarch's tone.

"But Father…" Alan began before Jeff cut him off once more.

"No buts, Alan. I know you've only been back three weeks and that you're not due to go back yet but John needs to come down…and he needs to come down now."

Gordon's "What's wrong with John, Father?" clashed with Virgil's worried "Is John sick?" which overlapped with Scott's "This is something to do with that letter, isn't it?" Jeff raised his hand up to stop them.

"John is fine," he assured everyone. "He doesn't know it yet but he's going to need some personal time over the next…he's…well he's just going to need to take some personal time."

The three older boys opened their mouths to argue but were silenced by a stern look from their father. "No more," he said firmly. "I have to talk to John now. Scott, Alan, get yourselves ready."

Alan quietly hugged an unhappy looking Tin-Tin before getting up and disappearing into the house without looking back. Scott looked across the pool and met Virgil's worried gaze for a moment until, without warning, the mid-aged brother was upended, fully clothed, into the pool. Gordon caught Scott's eye and winked before throwing himself into the pool after the now-surfaced and spluttering Virgil.

Scott smiled and shook his head gently, rolling his eyes to himself as he watched his brothers. Gordon was nothing if not creative in his methods to stop Virgil mulling things over and over in his head. The quiet, studious middle Tracy child was renowned for bottling up his feelings and worries until, eventually, they would come to a head in a complete breakdown and reduce the young man to an emotional wreck for anywhere up to several days.

The years directly after Lucille's death had been a trying time for the whole family but Virgil had been hit particularly hard, having been trapped in the crushed cabin with his mother's body for several days before rescuers had finally managed to dig them out. Despite everyone's assurances and discussions to the contrary Virgil had always blamed himself for his mother's death. If he hadn't become sick during that fateful skiing holiday then he and his mother would have been safely up on the ski slopes with his father and brothers when the avalanche happened. Instead Lucille had stayed in the cabin with Virgil and had lost her life due to a sick boy and a tragic, brutal act of nature. Jeff, Grandma, Tin-Tin, her family and his brothers had learned to judge his moods very well and usually managed to avoid a meltdown, although on occasion the inevitable still happened and everyone would have to pitch in to help pick up the pieces.

Scott jumped and realised he'd delayed too long in his musings when Gordon surfaced in front of him and carefully flicked a single drop of water onto his face. While Virgil often needed a short, sharp shock to bring him out of his introspection, Scott needed the complete opposite. A gentle pat on the back, a squeeze on the neck or a softly spoken word to remind that there was someone else around who cared for him was the best way to shake Scott from his thoughts. Gordon waited quietly until the droplet of water sliding down Scott's nose eventually registered with his brother and Scott finally focussed on him.

"You OK, bro?" the red-head asked quietly. "You've got that look about you."

Scott leaned forward and absent-mindedly played with Gordon's wet hair while he thought out his reply. He knew exactly what Gordon meant by 'the look' and he also knew that his second-youngest sibling wouldn't let him leave without an answer. He pulled a chunk of hair until it stood in proud spikes on top of Gordon's head and then used the flat of his hand to squash the hair back, more or less, into its original position.

"I don't think there can be anything physically wrong with John," he answered eventually. "Dad wouldn't have let him go up there in the first place if there was any chance he was sick and I'm sure we would have heard if he'd've somehow hurt himself while he's been..." Scott stopped speaking and waved the hand that had been toying with Gordon's hair in a vague motion that pointed up into the sky.

Gordon nodded silently and waited for Scott to continue.

Almost as if he needed the contact with his brother Scott placed his hand back on Gordon's wet hair and started talking again. "He…I'm not supposed to say anything but John got a letter this morning, from a solicitors in Tasmania. I think this must be something to do with that but for the life of me I can't work out what it could all be about."

Gordon nodded under Scott's hand. "It takes a lot to fluster Father," he agreed. "Although something's definitely up but he won't tell us until he's good and ready, of that you can be sure."

The elder brother snorted through his nose at this. "Oh, I'm sure alright!" he said with a grin as Alan's voice came floating out of the house shouting that he was ready and asking why Scott was still 'lazin' by the pool'.

Scott patted Gordon on the head as he stood up and the red-head immediately submerged himself in the pool and disappeared. Scott then ambled back into the house reminding Alan that his was a return journey and that Alan was the one who had needed to pack for a stay away. Alan grumbled at that but Scott knew it was half-hearted. Much as Alan liked his downtime on the island Scott knew that the youngest boy couldn't deny John anything. Now the boys had all grown up, the two blonde brothers were probably the closest out of all them and were renowned for their long, varied conversations over the vid-comm units when one or the other was up on Five.

"C'mon little bro," he said quietly. "Let's get this done."


	3. Chapter 3

~#~ (Chapter 3)

"Base calling Thunderbird 5, this is base calling Thunderbird 5, come in John."

There was a short pause and then the sweaty face of John Tracy appeared on the vid-comm screen as he flopped down into the control chair. "Hello," he started, then he stopped and sucked in a couple of deep breaths. Panting slightly he tried again, "Dad, hi, what can I do for you?"

"John?" Jeff's concerned voice and picture came clearly over the vid-comm unit. "John, are you alright?"

John looked down at himself and realised that he probably looked a bit of a mess in contrast to the usual immaculately pressed, prim and proper way he looked when he himself made contact with the island. "I'm sorry Father, you caught me in the middle of my morning run. Five times clockwise, five times anti-clockwise, five times over."

Jeff raised his eyebrows at this but refrained from commenting. What John found to amuse himself up on Thunderbird 5 was his own business but the father couldn't imagine his youngest son doing the same. Running around and around the station 'just for fun' just didn't sound like Alan at all.

Jeff shook himself and turned to the matter in hand. "John, I'm sorry to say that we have a bit of a situation down here. One that you are unwittingly, smack bang in the middle of."

John cocked his head to one side as he listened to his father and then raised his eyebrows as if to say 'continue'.

"You received a letter this morning and I opened and read it. What was inside was…disturbing to say the least. It's not something that I'm altogether comfortable discussing with you over the vid-link so Scott and Alan are on their way to bring you down. Alan will look after Thunderbird 5 while you're down here and Scott…well, Scott's acting as chauffer. They'll be there soon so I'll leave you get yourself ready."

With that, Jeff closed the connection between the vid-comm units and the space station fell silent while John mulled over his father's words. Jeff had not been particularly forthcoming with his information and after a while John realised that his father had looked more stressed than he had seen him in a long time. How had he, who spent at least half the year floating 250 miles above the earth, caused his father that much anxiety? He had always been good and played by the rules. He barely touched alcohol and only smoked occasionally. He'd never really even got into fights at school - he'd always left that up to Scott and Virgil who could scrap with the best of them. Try as he might John couldn't work out what he'd done wrong but after thinking things over for a few minutes, he gave up and went to get changed before his brothers arrived.

~#~

John was changed, packed and more than ready to go way before Thunderbird 3 finished its docking procedure. The wait had done him no good whatsoever and he had spent the time mulling over the reasons why his father could be summoning him back to Earth so suddenly. By the time Scott and Alan boarded Thunderbird 5, John was positively buzzing with nervous tension. He met his eldest and youngest brothers at the air lock and unintentionally upset Alan with an explosion of 'What the heck is going on?' Alan was so unused to seeing his usually placid and unflappable confidante in such a worked up state that it took Scott quite some time to calm the pair of them down. None of the three really knew anything different to the others apart from the fact that Scott could tell them that the mystery envelope had come from Tasmania. This was no help in the long run though due to John confirming that he didn't know anyone in Tasmania and had, indeed, never been there.

On seeing how upset both Alan and John had become - and remembering Virgil's worried look by the pool - Scott silently fumed at his father for not handling the situation better. Granted the older man couldn't and shouldn't be expected to tell all of them everything all of the time but somehow keeping them all almost completely in the dark had worked out poorly this time.

Eventually Alan was settled enough to leave on Thunderbird 5 and Scott gently persuaded John to enter and sit down in Thunderbird 3. He then slipped back into the space station to give his little brother one last comforting hug and a promise that he'd call to let Alan know that they landed back on the island. He also vowed to call the moment he found out anything new.

Leaving the youngest Tracy in charge, Scott piloted the big red rocket on a very tense and almost silent trip back to Tracy Island.

~#~

Scott was getting increasingly worried about John. The closer Thunderbird 3 got to Earth and the island, the paler John got. The elder of the two brothers knew how John hated the thought of getting into trouble. He had always been the peacekeeper of the house, the one to break up fights and arguments with quiet reasoning and logic. John abhorred unnecessary violence or conflict and because of this crowded, noisy areas occasionally had an unfortunate effect on him. This was one of the things that made the space station an ideal workplace for him. He could organise his time and his workspace to exactly how he wanted it and, if he wanted, he could go for days without any physical human contact of any description. Now he was being forced back down to Earth for a reason unknown. Unknown except that it was something that he was unknowingly in the thick of…something that had clearly upset his father and in so doing, had ended up disrupting his whole family.

On arrival at Thunderbird 3's hidden silo John sunk down into the cushions of the sofa and stared at his knees. As they made their way upwards to the control centre, Scott risked putting a comforting arm around his brother's shoulders and was rewarded with a weak smile and a slight softening of John's stiff stance.


	4. Chapter 4

~#~ (Chapter 4)

All too soon the sofa arrived at its destination near to where Jeff was waiting, sitting at the control desk. The Tracy patriarch was surprised to see John accepting comfort from Scott in the form of a hug but one glance at the black look directed at him by Scott made him keep his mouth firmly closed. Jeff Tracy may have been the one who ruled the roost on the island but even he knew to keep well out of Scott's line of fire when his eldest son was in full on protection mode.

Scott had initially balked at the idea of sharing his parents with more children and had instantly resented the small, blonde wailing person who arrived to take up so much of his parents' time. It was only when Virgil had been born that Scott's now-infamous big brother tendencies had kicked in. He had immediately bonded with his younger, dark haired brother and had doted on him from day one. Virgil's birth had also proved the turning point in the constant struggle between the two older brothers but that may have been mostly because Scott had pretty much ignored John from the moment that Virgil arrived. Scott had seemed to mellow more with the arrival of Gordon but only after Alan's hurried, premature birth had he truly bonded with his next-oldest sibling.

John had been delighted when Alan was born blonde because, having seen the bond that linked the two brown-haired Tracy children, he knew the tiny little scrap of a boy would be his lifelong ally. It had devastated John when Alan was taken away at just a few minutes old and placed in a special care baby unit before he had even got to touch him and this was the first time ever that Scott had willingly reached out to comfort his next oldest sibling. Jeff, in the confusion of the hospital, managed to lose track of his three eldest children for a short while and, when they were found it was discovered that they had got almost all the way to the room where Alan had been taken. Whether they had gotten lost or had hidden from a member of staff, no-one could be certain but the three were found cuddled together in the corner of a mostly-empty storage room. John, with tear-tracks still drying on his face, had been securely ensconced between his two brown-haired brothers and all three had been fast asleep. From that day onwards John had been firmly included in Scott's list of 'those who must be protected at all costs'.

~#~

Jeff got up and quietly approached the sofa where his two eldest children still sat. At a nod from his father Scott gave John's shoulder a squeeze and slowly moved away when the blonde acknowledged him.

He then wandered out of the house and through the access tunnels into Thunderbird 1's silo so he could make the call to Alan to let him know that they'd arrived safely. Scott didn't really need to call as Thunderbird 5 was more than capable of letting its occupant know where any/all of the Thunderbird craft were at any point in time. He was going to contact Alan simply because he had promised to and because he was naturally concerned about his youngest sibling.

The eldest Tracy boy had to chuckle to himself when he walked into the silo only to find Tin-Tin talking quietly to the bank of computers at the back of the room. The young girl was obviously engrossed in her conversation and had not heard him enter the room so Scott whistled quietly to avoid startling her. As she heard his whistle Tin-Tin turned to watch him walk forwards and Scott caught a glimpse of Alan's face on the vid-comm screen behind her. Crouching beside her, Scott waved at his little brother with a cheery announcement of "Hi Al, we're back."

Alan grinned. "So I see," he replied and then his grin faded. "How's John?"

Scott shrugged in a non-committal way. "Difficult to tell, he'd pretty much shut down by the time we'd got back here. Father's with him now and with any luck, once he actually knows what's going on, he'll be a darn site better. If someone doesn't talk to you first I'll let you know as soon as I know anything more. In the mean time I'm going to go track down Gordon and Virg and I'll leave you with the lovely Tin-Tin!"

With that, Scott rose to his feet and patted the now furiously-blushing Tin-Tin on the shoulder before walking away.


	5. Chapter 5

~#~ (Chapter 5)

While Scott was taking to Alan, Jeff was trying to rouse John from the fugue that he had sunk into on the sofa. The Tracy patriarch sat in the seat that Scott had vacated and spoke quietly to his second eldest child and eventually the coiled spring of tension within John had gradually unwound. Having not been chewed out immediately upon arrival back on Earth, John had calmed considerably, not really listening to the quiet words that his father was murmuring but using the time to get his thoughts together and clear his head.

After a while John finally turned to face his father and the elder man stood and held out his hand to help his son up. He then motioned towards the door of his office and followed as John slowly strode inside.

John waited for Jeff to enter the room, close the door behind him and then sit down before John himself took the seat on the opposite side of the desk to his father. Jeff pursed his lips and pressed his two middle fingers against his mouth as he thought best of how to ask John what he needed to know.

"John," he started, looking down at the folded letter on his desk to give him inspiration. "Firstly I suppose I need to ask you if you know a girl named Rosemary Sampson and if so just…" Jeff stopped and winced, "…just how well you know her."

John looked poleaxed. "I…I…I…" He stopped and blew out a long, deep breath before trying again. "Rosemary? Do you mean Rosie, Dad? I've known Rosie for years…we went to Harvard together. You met her at our graduation. We've often met up since then, you know, when I was…'around.' She rented a smallholding on the Bay of Plenty so it was only a relatively short trip to go and visit but then, when I tried to contact her about a year ago, none of the numbers I had for her worked any more. I often wonder where she suddenly went and why she didn't leave me any way of getting in touch. I kind of hoped that the Prince Charming she spoke about so often had swept her off her feet and whisked her away to married life. Wherever she is I hope she's happy."

Jeff winced again and then immediately tried to straighten his face before John noticed. Needless to say he failed and John immediately carried on with "What, Dad? What's this all about?"

Jeff held up a hand to stop him. "I promise I will get to that in just a moment, son. Just one more thing first though…could you tell me, when was the last time you…met up with Rosie?"

"Um…" John made a fist with his left hand and tapped it gently against his mouth as he thought back. "It was after the oil field fiasco. Do you remember? When I couldn't go back up to Five because of the smoke inhalation."

"That's right," Jeff agreed. "I won't forget that one in a hurry. Gordon didn't appreciate being stuck up there one little bit."

John smirked slightly as he pictured Gordon stuck up on Five, about as far away from his beloved swimming pool as it was possible to get. "OK, so that would have been what fifteen…sixteen months ago now? I spent most of those two months with Rosie before I had to go back 'to work'. I promised to get in touch as soon as I got back but that was when Alan got sick and I ended up staying on Five for two and a half rotations. When I finally got back was when I discovered that Rosie had…well…gone. I flew over to visit in case she'd changed her number for some reason but someone else was living in her house. No-one seemed to have a forwarding address for her nor knew where, why or exactly when she had moved…at least if they did they weren't telling me. I don't understand Father, what is this all about?"

Jeff silently pushed the folded letter across the desk to his son. John unfurled the letter and removed the photographs, barely looking at them as his focus was purely on the letter itself. Jeff had read the letter through several times and he could tell by the gasps and sharp inhalations of breath that its contents were having the same effect on John as it had on him earlier.

John finished with the letter and, with shaking hands, turned to the photographs. One by one he looked through them and at one point Jeff was dismayed to see tears roll from his son's eyes as he gently traced a face on one of the pictures with his fingertip. The blonde eventually looked up at his father with a myriad of expressions in his eyes - dismay, hope, love, confusion - all were clearly visible for Jeff to see.

"This…but…she…Dad?" The confusion in John's eyes was coursing through his whole body and stopping him from stringing a complete sentence together. "Dad?" he tried again. "This is…is this for real?"

Jeff nodded before standing and walking around to the side of the desk where John was sitting. He carefully pulled the letter and photo's from his son's hand and laid them on the desk before pulling John against his chest and letting him cry.

"She's dead, Dad," the muffled voice came from somewhere near Jeff's heart. "How can she be dead? She was always so full of life…so very, very alive."

"I know, son," Jeff agreed, stroking John's fair hair gently with one hand. "It's not fair but there's nothing you could have done. There's nothing anyone could have done. I'm sure that Rosie thought what she was doing was for the best when she left but no-one could have imagined that something like this might happen."

"I know that…but the baby…he's all alone now." John wrenched himself out of Jeff's grasp and sat upright, looking his father in the eye with shining blue eyes. "I've got to go, Dad, you know I have. I've got to…I've got to know…"

Jeff nodded knowingly. "I've already made arrangements and told the hospital that someone would be there soon. I had Virgil prepare the jet as soon as Scott and Alan had taken off in Thunderbird 3." John opened his mouth to speak but Jeff cut him off before he was able. "Don't worry, I haven't told him anything, that wouldn't have been right. Neither have I said anything to any of your other brothers. It's not my place to tell them anything about this situation. I'm leaving it up to you how much, or how little, you tell them. Just remember that you will need to tell them something. Preparing the jet gave Virgil something to think about and to be honest I have no clue where Gordon is. I lost track of him at some point around lunchtime. I'm sure he's not all that far away but, for once, he's sensibly keeping his head down." Jeff stopped and looked his son straight in the eye. "You do realise that I'm coming with you, don't you?"

John just nodded, the emotions of the day having drained him to the point where he had begun to feel light-headed. "I think that's probably a good idea," he said quietly and then wrapped his arms around his father's chest and sunk against him with a heavy sigh. Jeff, being unused to John being the one to initiate physical contact was momentarily stunned but quickly came to his senses and wrapped his arms tightly around his son, resting his chin on the blonde head and, once again, murmuring nonsense to him.


	6. Chapter 6

~#~ (Chapter 6)

All too soon it seemed that John felt ready to leave the relative safety of his father's office. He headed straight for his room to pack a couple of suits and then made his way to the airstrip, knowing that Jeff would have loaded the bags from Thunderbird 3's silo onto the plane by the time he arrived.

As he approached the strip of tarmac John could see that Jeff was standing beside the plane surrounded by Scott, Virgil and Gordon. He sighed, realising that he had been foolish to think that he and Jeff would get off the island with no questions asked. Jeff would have to tell them that he was leaving because Scott would need to take charge of International Rescue while he was gone. Also it was reasonable to expect that the brothers would want an explanation as to why John and their father were suddenly jetting off somewhere together in mysterious circumstances. If the situation was reversed and it was one of the other brothers who was having a hard time then John knew that he would be want to know what was happening. Jeff saw John coming and when his son nodded that he was alright, climbed up into the plane to give John the chance to speak to his brothers alone.

"Hi guys," he said quietly as he approached. "You here to see us off?"

Scott and Gordon nodded, Virgil simply gave a worried smile and sidled nearer to Scott who automatically threw an arm around his shoulders and pulled him closer.

"Has Father said anything?" John asked, as he watched the interaction between the two brown-haired brothers. "…about…about where we're going and why?"

Scott rocked his head from side to side as he replied. "He's only told us that someone you know well has passed away and that the pair of you may be gone for some time. Really, John, that's all we know. There are always plenty of loose ends to tie up when someone dies and I assume that's what you and Dad are going to be doing."

John nodded sadly and looked down at the floor. "Loose ends…that's kind of right, yeah, me and Dad will be tidying up loose ends." He then stopped and shook himself as a momentary chill ran up and down his spine.

"Wh…who?" Virgil asked quietly. "Who died, John?"

John looked stunned for a moment until he remembered that Jeff had only given the other boys a very limited amount of information, leaving it up to John exactly how much he told them. "Oh, Virg, it was Rosie. I introduced her to everyone at our graduation from Harvard, do you remember?"

"Little Rosie posy with a flower in her hair?" Gordon piped up suddenly, recalling the silly nickname that had stuck the moment he'd thought of it. "Tiny little blonde thing with a scar across her forehead?" John nodded his confirmation so Gordon continued. "Aw man, that's rough, what happened?"

The corners of John's mouth had turned up slightly at Gordon's affectionate description of Rosie. "Drunk driver," he replied quietly. "…jumped a red light and smashed into the side of her car. She was killed instantly. Someone's got to sort out her…um…personal effects. I'd guess that her apartment needs closing up and…things need doing. The police found my details amongst some paperwork and gave them to the solicitor that is looking after…everything." John found that he couldn't bring himself to tell his brothers everything but that it took a weight off telling them what he could. "I…I don't know how long we'll be gone but…Father may be back before me."

"Don't worry about it, bro," Scott urged as he leaned sideways and pulled John gently into a one armed hug. His other arm still being occupied by Virgil made for an untidy gaggle of people. Gordon, never one to be outdone, joined the impromptu scrum and the four brothers hugged one another tightly until John pulled away and climbed into the plane without saying another word.

~#~

Jeff waited until the three brothers on the ground stepped back inside the hangar and then took the plane smoothly into the air. Once they were at optimum cruising height Jeff engaged the auto-pilot and looked towards his too-quiet son. John was staring silently out of the window and Jeff knew that the blonde wasn't simply watching the clouds as they scuttled past. John's mind was elsewhere and Jeff had a good idea just where that somewhere was.

Jeff settled himself down for a quiet flight and when he looked over at John about an hour later, the second eldest Tracy boy was fast asleep.


	7. Chapter 7

~#~ (Chapter 7)

The next thing John was properly aware of was Jeff shaking him to tell him to buckle-up ready for landing at Hobart International Airport. Jeff had already arranged for a car to be waiting for them and made sure it was to be at their disposal for as long as they needed it. Once they left the airport it was only a short hop down the highway to the hospital.

On arrival they made their presence known to the hospital staff and were ushered into a quiet office to await the arrival of both the hospital curator and the police officer who was in charge of Rosemary Sampson's case.

The curator, a matronly lady of indeterminate age, entered the office not more than a couple of minutes after the Tracys had sat down. She explained that the officer in charge of the case was on his way and that he was a seasoned policeman by the name of Spencer Allan. She told them that Officer Allan had personally taken on the case after attending the accident that had claimed Rosie's life and also that of the drunk who had been driving the other car. She then apologised for the fact that, until the officer arrived, she was unable to tell them anything more and scurried out of the room to make some tea.

~#~

"Mr Tracy," a voice called out as the door swung open after about ten minutes of waiting. Both Tracys raised their heads and looked towards the source of the voice.

Spencer Allan was more than a little on the portly side and was approaching retirement age. He had a friendly manner about him and moved quickly into the room to shake John and Jeff's hands. He then removed his hat and dropped gently into a chair opposite where they were sitting, scrubbing his hands through his bright red hair to bring it back into some semblance of order.

"Mr Tracy," he tried again, only to get an immediate "Yes, sir" from John and a "Yes, officer" from Jeff. He quickly held up both hands and waved to stop them. He then pointed to Jeff who replied "I'm Jeff Tracy and this is my son John. It is he whom you are here to see, just think of me as…as his moral support."

The officer looked over at John and nodded, he then looked back at Jeff with a curious expression on his face. "Jeff Tracy?" he repeated. "Not Jeff Tracy as in Jefferson Tracy as in landing on the moon Jefferson Tracy?"

Jeff nodded. "One and the same I'm afraid," Jeff leaned across the low table and shook the officer's hand again. "I'm pleased to make your acquaintance Officer Allan."

The officer was clearly flustered but recovered quickly. "Please, it's Spencer or just Spence," he offered and then turned from Jeff to his son who was sitting quietly watching the interaction between the two men. "So, John, may I call you John to keep things simple?" John nodded silently. "Obviously you've received the letter from Hines & Huberts," John nodded again. "And you know that the deceased, Rosemary Sampson, had no traceable family other than her son?" John nodded for a third time. "And that, when we…" Spencer paused and sucked an uncomfortable breath through his teeth "…entered her apartment to try and locate a living relative for the boy the name that came up most often was your own?"

"Yes," John answered, out loud this time, which startled Spencer although he did very well at covering the fact. "What about his birth certificate. That hadn't been found when the letter was posted."

Spencer nodded sadly. "We have that now, well a copy of it, anyway. We managed to track the birth down to a women's refuge in Devonport but their records list the father as J. G. Tracy, deceased."

Without warning John let out a strangled half-sob and jumped to his feet and out of the door before Jeff could react. Jeff was on his feet a moment later but when Spencer also moved to stand Jeff stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "Let's give him a moment, shall we?" he suggested. "I don't think he'll go far, just as long as he finds himself an empty room where he can be alone for a while." Jeff then sat himself back down to wait.

While they were waiting for John to reappear the two older men discussed the finer points of Rosie's case. They avoided the immediate issue of the baby boy's parentage but deliberated how they were going to break to John that he would eventually need to go through the apartment to decide what to keep and what to get rid of. John's were the only up to date contact details that had been found in the small home, any others they had tried had proved to be several years out of date. If John was unwilling, or unable, to take on the task of sorting out the apartment then the local authorities would have step in, clear it and anything useable would be donated to charity. Any personal items along with anything unusable or unwanted would be destroyed and therefore lost forever. Jeff told Spencer that he understood but not to worry about that becoming an issue. If John couldn't bring himself to do it then Jeff would arrange for someone to sympathetically empty the home. By his actions and his upset, it was clear that John had been in love with Rosie. Regardless to whether or not he was the father of Rosie's baby, they would both need photographs and mementos to remember her by.

This brought up the previously avoided topic of the baby's genetic makeup. Jeff shocked Spencer by bringing up the subject of DNA testing before the officer had the chance to do so and both men agreed that getting John to submit a sample for analysis was probably the next logical stage in the proceedings. The baby had already had a DNA profile logged on the computer so it was just a case of getting John's profile logged and placed along side it for comparison.


	8. Chapter 8

~#~ (Chapter 8)

Unknown to the two men John had returned about half way through their conversation and upon hearing the dialogue, had stopped outside the door. Standing with his head against the grainy wood he silently listened to them discuss the process that he would have to undertake to submit his sample to the hospital. He also learned that any sample taken that day would be ready for analysis the following morning. Suddenly he realised that the conversation inside the room had petered out to an uncomfortable-seeming silence so he stood up straight, scrubbed his hands over his face and quietly pushed the door open.

Jeff jumped to his feet and shot across the room towards his son, as if he expected him to bolt from the room again at any moment. "John, thank God. I was starting to worry."

"I'm OK, Father. Sorry to have worried you," John replied quietly, moving back over to the chairs and sitting down. "I needed somewhere quiet where I could get my head back on straight. I got kind of turned around and ended up in the chapel which turned out to be just what I needed." He stopped and thought for a moment before continuing. "I…I overheard part of what you were saying. How soon can you arrange for me to give a sample for profiling?"

Spencer looked astounded that John had asked so calmly about the genetic sampling when he had emotionally fled the room not twenty minutes before and it took him a couple of moments to respond. "I can arrange for that pretty much right away, if that's what you want? You'll know in the morning if the boy really is yours but if you want my opinion I'd say just from looking that there's a damn fine chance that he is. He's just got something of your look about him, the lad has."

John looked up and raised his hand to Jeff who immediately grasped the outstretched hand and sat down next to him. John's next words were barely audible."Well, we'll know for definite tomorrow, won't we?"

Spencer sensed that he'd stepped over an invisible line with his comment about the boy's looks. He had forgotten that, apart from a couple of photos, neither Tracy had actually seen the boy. Until they knew for definite whether the child was related to them, they might not want to. "I'll go and chase up a nurse and a sample kit," he offered. "Do you guys have somewhere to stay tonight? If not I can recommend a couple of decent hotels, if it'd help?"

"No, we're fine in that respect," Jeff replied, shaking his head gently while he spoke. "I have reservations near to the airport - called them in while we were in flight."

Spencer nodded. "OK then, that's good. I'll go find that nurse then."

With that Spencer left the room and John slumped forwards, pulling his arm out of Jeff's grasp and hiding his face in his hands. "I hate this," he said miserably, his voice muffled and distorted by his hands. "I don't know if I can go through with it. I'm not ready. I don't even know what…whether I want the test to…I just…I…aargh, Dad, I can't do this. I just want to go home."

"John Tracy, you listen to me and you listen good." Jeff resorted to using his USAF colonel voice - one that had never failed to get any of the boys to sit up and take notice. "You have no choice. It's too late to turn back now. If that boy really is a Tracy then you need to know…hell, _we_ need to know. What are you saying? Tell me that you're not seriously thinking about turning your back on your own flesh and blood John, because if you are then I've sorely misjudged you."

"No!" John shot to his feet and shocked Jeff by facing off against him, something that the most placid of his sons had never done before. "No, Dad, just…no, of course I'm not. If he's mine - and everyone seems to have decided that he is before we've even seen him - then there's no question, of course I'll take him on. But Dad, what if he's not mine? What then? He's still Rosie's baby and he'll still be stuck in the hospital with…with nowhere to go and no-one to care for him. What…what…what then?"

Before Jeff could formulate an answer a worried looking nurse poked her head around the door frame. "Sirs," she said quietly. "Should I come back later?"

"No!" The overly loud reply came from both men simultaneously and sent a look of momentary alarm skittering across the nurse's pretty features. Inadvertently her timely arrival served to break up the stand-off between the two Tracy men and John, realising the position he was in, took a hurried step back away from his father, sitting down suddenly when the back of his knees collided with the chair behind him. Jeff, seemingly without realising it, widened the gap even further when he took a step away from John and ushered the nurse further into the room.

"Sir," the nurse addressed Jeff. "I think it might be wise for you to step out for a while. Why don't you go to the canteen? Get yourself a drink and something to eat while I speak to your son." When Jeff looked like he was going to argue the nurse tried again. "Sir, please?"

Jeff's eyes met John's now-defeated looking blue ones and the blonde son slowly blinked and nodded his head minutely in agreement. "Go, Dad. I'll be OK with…" John paused and squinted at the name badge that was pinned to the nurse's chest. As she was standing over by Jeff it was a little too far away for him to read properly but he took a guess at "…Jayne?"

"That's right sweetie, we'll be fine." Jayne nodded and smiled down at John where he was sitting. Turning back to Jeff she said, "… Mr Tracy, go. We'll need maybe half an hour at most but I don't want to see you back here even one second before a full hour has passed."

Jeff took a step backwards, a glimmer of amusement lighting up his eyes. It wasn't often that someone took it upon themselves to order Jeff Tracy around but the tiny, raven-haired nurse had done it without missing a beat. She had also done it in such a way that Jeff really didn't mind. He nodded and smiled, once at Jayne and then again to acknowledge John. He then turned on his heel and marched from the room knowing that his son was in good hands.


	9. Chapter 9

~#~ (Chapter 9)

"Phew!" Jayne exclaimed as she sat down gently on the low table in front of John. "I wasn't sure he was going to go. Are…are you OK?" Jayne couldn't make out the odd expression on John's face as he stared at the door that his father had just left by.

John then snorted quietly through his nose and turned his blue eyes towards the waiting nurse. "That was amazing," he said quietly. "No-one tells my father what to do and actually _gets_ him to do it! Did he really need to go? I thought you would just be doing a mouth swab, was I mistaken?"

Jayne leaned over and patted him on the knee. "No, sweetie, you weren't mistaken, that's exactly what I'm going to do. It's just that when I came in it looked like the pair of you were about to come to blows and you could almost feel the tension in the air. A hot drink and something sweet will do your father the world of good and I'm going to recommend the same for yourself once I'm finished with you. Is that clear?"

John looked down at his feet in an effort to cover the smile that was threatening and uttered a quiet "Yes, ma'am." This gained him another pat on the knee before Jayne stood back up so that she could remove a small box from her pocket. She then sat down again while she unfastened the box and removed a set of instructions. She handed these to John and waited quietly while he read through them.

"OK," he said eventually. "I understand. One thing though…" Jayne tilted her head to urge him to continue. "When this is done…can I leave? I…I'd kind of like to get out of here. If you don't mind my saying so?"

Jayne sent a caring smile in his direction before answering. Most of the nurses in the staff in the small hospital knew the story of the injured orphan boy currently residing in the nursery up on the third floor. Apart from authoritative figures the child had received no outside visitors during his fortnight in their care and the kind-hearted nurses from all around the hospital had taken it upon themselves to make sure the tot was never alone. Jayne had been fully briefed on the situation between John and the baby when she was asked to collect the DNA sample for analysis and she now felt very sorry for the obviously gentle-hearted man in front of her. "Wouldn't you like to pay a visit to Jacob before you leave?" she asked. "I don't believe he's had any visitors today."

A furrow appeared on John's brow at this but he silently shook his head before eventually replying. "Jacob," he said quietly. "I never…never knew his name." He sat quietly and thought for a moment before speaking again. "No," he said, shaking his head again and speaking to the floor. "No, I couldn't. Not until I know…really know I mean. This should…should never have happened. I…I never meant for it to happen. We…we were always…always careful. Rosie must have known that I'd've married her if I'd known about the baby…even if it wasn't mine. She must have known that, she must have...I just don't understand…I don't understand anything any more." John's voice broke at this point and the last couple of words ended in barely a squeak as he folded in on himself and hugged his body tightly down against his legs, hiding his face from the world.

Jayne looked briefly dismayed but her years of nursing experience told her that emotions were better off outside of the body than trapped in a deep, dark box that could lead to depression. She placed a comforting hand on one of John's shoulders and waited.

~#~

When John finally emerged from hiding the first thing he saw was Jayne, quietly perched on the table in front of him. The nurse rummaged in her pocket, pulled out a packet of tissues and handed them to him. He received them with a grateful look and proceeded to make himself look somewhat more presentable again.

"Feel better?" the nurse asked, once he had wiped his eyes and blown his nose. John nodded vaguely and tried to hand back the unused portion of the tissue packet. Jayne waved him away. "Keep them," she offered. "I think you need them more than me."

John looked bashfully down at the floor. "Sorry. I seem to have done that way too many times in the last couple of days. It's just all this…it's _so_ out of my comfort zone, it's untrue. I kind of wish I could rewind time back to last week - back to when everything was…well…normal. Rosie would be alive, I'd be…at work and my whole family wouldn't be in a complete uproar."

"I can kind of understand that," Jayne began. "But unfortunately that's just not possible. Think about it like this - if you turned back time then you wouldn't have found out about the gorgeous little person upstairs who might be your son. It's true that his mother would have still been alive and he wouldn't have been hurt but you wouldn't have known about any of it. I know it's a bit cliché but, John, I truly believe that everything happens for a reason. Who knows, maybe the reason that drunk got in his car that day was because fate had decided that little Jacob needed his to meet his Dad. I'm sure his…I'm sure Rosie was doing her best but, well, a boy should know his father."

John let out a heavy sigh. "I know," he agreed. "I also think that fate plays a bigger part in our lives than any of us could ever hope to understand. My Dad is a huge example of what can happen when fate aims its curve-ball in your direction. Before…before our mother died Dad was never around. He was always working away or in meetings of one type or another. Oh, he was always around for Christmas, Thanksgiving and family holidays but he was never around for the little things, the school plays and the sports days, that sort of thing. It was only after everything had settled down after Mother died that I realised that we had lost one parent only to gain another one who had barely been there before. Other things since then have led me to have a healthy respect for fate as well…" John's speech petered out as it dawned on him that the conversation was heading dangerously towards the topic of International Rescue. He suddenly realised that he was feeling much calmer again and smiled to himself. Jayne was certainly a people person - and fantastically good at her job.


	10. Chapter 10

~#~ (Chapter 10)

Once John had calmed down sufficiently Jayne quietly and efficiently took the swab sample from him. She carefully labelled the test and promised to return after running it down to the lab herself. Jeff still hadn't returned by the time she got back so she slipped from the room again and brought John back a hot, sweet tea and a donut, which she claimed had come from the nurses' secret stash of treats. She also managed to acquire a magazine about model aircraft for John to read. When he queried where she'd found it she blushed and replied that it was probably best that he didn't know but that she was pretty sure he'd prefer it to 'one of the trashy womens' magazines that littered most of the tables in the waiting room'. John agreed that she was probably right and the nurse gave him a cheery grin before leaving him alone.

~#~

John was still reading the magazine but had finished the donut and tea by the time that Jeff reappeared.

"Scary lady gone?" his father asked as he stepped back into the room. "Everything go OK?"

John dropped the magazine onto the tabletop with a plop. "Yes and yes," he replied with a small smile and a bob of his head. "They want me back by 10 o'clock tomorrow morning; the results should be back by then. Will you come with back me, tomorrow I mean?"

Jeff held his hand out to pull John to his feet. "Of course I will, son. Of course I will. Wherever you want me, for the next few days, I'm there. You ready to get out of here now?"

John nodded and then looked round the small room to check there was nothing he needed to take with him. "Ah ha," he said absently, not seeing anything particularly out of place. "Been ready for a while. Where've you been anyway?"

Jeff smiled a sad smile and placed a gentle hand on John's back to propel him towards the door. "I did the same thing as you and ended up in the chapel," he admitted. "It's been quite a while since I had so much to tell your mother."

John turned and looked his father in the eye for a moment and saw only love and compassion staring back at him. He then turned back towards the door and allowed Jeff to push him out of the room.

~#~

The two Tracys quietly left the hospital, both now too caught up in their thoughts to do much talking. As they got to the car Jeff caught John looking wistfully up towards the third floor and followed his gaze to where brightly coloured cartoon characters had been painted on the windows. All too soon the moment passed though and John shook himself and clambered into the car without a word.

Upon arrival at the hotel the two men had a quick wash up and then most of a light dinner, before John admitted defeat and asked to go back to their suite. Jeff had managed to secure the executive suite on the top floor of the hotel complete with a pair of bedrooms linked via a shared bathroom. If John was going to have a disturbed night then Jeff wanted to know about it because John sure as anything wouldn't tell his father even if he hadn't slept at all.

The elder Tracy found that he needn't have worried because John crashed almost as soon as he got into his room. He lasted long enough to change into a loose pair of soft, grey sweatpants before he had to lie down and he was asleep within seconds of his head hitting the pillow. Jeff checked on him several times but found that the blonde man barely moved a muscle the whole night. John was tired in both mind and body and, when the adrenalin highs and lows of the day's emotional roller-coaster had finally worn off his body had simply shut down.

Jeff called up Scott via his wrist-comm and got an all-clear from the island before he himself settled down for the night.

~#~

Water running in the bathroom next door gradually filtered into Jeff's subconscious and, as he fully awoke, he realised that John had woken before him and jumped in the shower in the adjoining room. The Tracy father lay quietly, listening until John switched off the shower and opened the door between the bathroom and his own room. That was Jeff's call to action and he quickly slipped from his bed and headed for the shower, grabbing his shaving kit from the nightstand as he passed it. He then showered, shaved and was just tying his laces when he heard John walking back into the bathroom. "It's alright, John," he called. "Come through."

John pushed the door open and dropped into the chair beside the bed while Jeff finished with his laces and found his jacket. The younger Tracy was dressed in a pair of smart black trousers and a soft, cotton button down shirt in an identical lilac colour to the sash he usually wore on his International Rescue uniform. Appearance had always been important to John and the whole outfit had obviously been carefully picked out. He had foregone a tie, had left the top button of the shirt undone and the effect just oozed smart/casual. Jeff nodded approvingly before shrugging himself into his jacket. "8 o'clock precisely," he announced. Knowing what a bundle of nerves John must be inside Jeff doubted his son would eat anything before they made their way to the hospital but he offered anyway. "Are you joining me for breakfast?"

John shrugged. "I haven't decided yet," he admitted. "I'd kill for a cup of coffee though, so I'll come down with you anyway."

Jeff nodded and then led the way downstairs.

John failed to eat any breakfast but had several cups of coffee while Jeff ate his. The pair then returned to their suite briefly to wash up before climbing in the car and heading back to the hospital.


	11. Chapter 11

~#~ (Chapter 11)

As they neared the hospital the tension in John's body began to mount and his heart rate began to climb. By the time Jeff had managed to usher him out of the car, through the doors and into the same little waiting room they had been in the day before, he had lost most of the colour in his face and could barely focus on anything except for the constant pounding in his ears. Upon orders from Jayne, who spotted them as soon as they entered the hospital, Jeff manhandled him into a chair and pressed his head down firmly between his knees. He gently held John in place until Jayne came bustling into the room with a glass of cold water and a couple of damp cloths. He moved back when Jayne stepped forwards and squatted on the floor in front of John. The little nurse quickly took charge as she laid one cloth across the back of John's neck and held the other against his forehead. She then held them in place as she gently coaxed him to calm down and breathe properly.

Eventually John gave a full body shudder and slowly uncurled himself, looking up at Jeff with a somewhat dazed expression on his face. Jayne removed the cloth from his neck and forehead and reached behind herself to put them on the table. She then handed John the water and due to his hands still being none too steady, helped him to slowly sip it. "We had ourselves a little panic attack there I think, didn't we, sweetie?" she said kindly, taking the water away when it seemed that John had finished with it. "Can I take a guess on no sleep, no breakfast, too much coffee and then an adrenaline overload upon arrival here?"

"Three out of four," Jeff grumbled from behind her. "He slept like a baby all night, had coffee for breakfast and got more and more wound up the nearer to here that we got. John, how are you feeling now? You're a better colour than you were when we got in here but you're still paler than normal."

John could still hear his heart pounding in his ears but the frenetic beat that it had taken on a few minutes before was settling to a more normal rhythm. He closed his eyes and sat for a few moments, just concentrating on his breathing and eventually the beat in his ears subsided to a manageable level. John opened his eyes and let out a deep breath. "I think I'm OK now," he announced quietly. "…but I will admit that I don't really remember coming in here. Is that normal?"

Jayne nodded and smiled. "The state you were in John, I'm amazed you were still standing, let alone walking around under your own steam. Your body may have been here but your mind was clearly somewhere else. All you did was get out of the car, walk in here and sit down so don't you start fretting over what you can and can't remember."

John nodded and then held out his, now much steadier hand. Jayne smiled and handed him the glass which he drained before putting it carefully down on the table.

"Much better," the little nurse nodded approvingly as she stood up and straightened her uniform. "Will the pair of you be alright in here for a little while? I was on my way to try and find out if your test results were back when you came in…but I didn't quite make it!" Jayne paused and thought for a moment. "Do you want me to take a look at the results first and then I can talk you through them to you or would you prefer I bring them in here before I open them?"

John took a deep breath, before quietly replying. "I…I think I'd rather you brought it in to look at and then tell me…us…" John paused and looked up at Jeff, who nodded. "…you can then tell us whether…you can tell us what it says." Jayne nodded and turned to leave the room but as she moved away John suddenly caught hold of her arm to stop her. She turned back to him with a questioning look on her face but it took a couple of deep breaths from John before he worked out exactly what he wanted to ask. "If…if he…if he…if he is…can I?" John gave up trying to word his question and looking helpless, waved vaguely in the direction of the door.

Jayne crouched in front of him. "Can you see him? Is that what you're trying to say?" John just nodded, not trusting himself to speak. "Oh, sweetie, of course you can. I told you that you could see him yesterday if you had wanted to, remember? If he _is_ yours then there's not a person in this hospital that could, or would, stop you seeing him. Can I say something else? And I mean it in a good way, even though it's going to sound a bit strange." John's brow crinkled a little but he nodded again. "If it turns out that you _are_ that little boy's father then it's going to make a lot of people very happy. Jacob has been here for two weeks with no contact from anybody other than our doctors and nurses, Spencer Allan, his partner Frank and a couple of random official types who have stuck their head through the door on occasion. If he's yours then all that will be able to change…he'll have a father and a grandfather...who, by the way, will love him as soon as they see him. Then, pretty soon, he'll be able to get out of here and finally start to live his life in a secure family unit. He's never really had that, even before his mother died. It's as homely as possibly up on Three but…it's not a home, do you understand me?"

"But…" John started. "…what if…"

"No," Jayne cut him off by pressing a finger gently across John's lips. "Don't start thinking about the 'what if's'. Let me go and we'll find out first. The 'what if's', if they come, can be dealt with later."


	12. Chapter 12

~#~ (Chapter 12)

It was only as Jayne said 'let me go' that John realised he had been gently holding the nurse's wrist since stopping her leaving the room and with an almost mechanical motion, he opened the fingers of his hand to free her.

"I shouldn't be long," she said as she stood up and moved away. Once level with Jeff she grabbed him by the arm and pulled him from the room. "I'm borrowing your father for just one second," she called to John and then shut the door behind herself before he got the chance to respond. "Keep him talking while I'm gone," she requested quietly. "Don't give him a chance to stop and think or he's liable to whip himself back into a state again. Remember he still hasn't eaten yet so he's going to be running on fumes and if he gets himself too worked up all over again then at some point he's going to crash. We'll work out what we're going to do next when we see how he reacts to the results. How about you, Jeff? I can't imagine that seeing John in quite such a state was particularly easy for you. How are you holding up?"

Jeff snorted quietly. "I'm alright, it's John I'm worried about. I will admit I've had better weeks than this one but…" Jeff paused and closed his eyes as he drew in a deep breath. "…I've known far worse and unfortunately so has John."

Jayne nodded sympathetically. "Go. Sit with your son and distract him, if that's possible." She patted Jeff on the arm and added, "I'll be as quick as I can."

~#~

Jeff sat next to John and struggled to keep his son's mind on other things during the ten minute wait while Jayne was gone. John's eyes continually flicked between Jeff, the table, the floor and the door but his father's quiet, inane chatter about anything and everything he could think of seemed to have some sort of calming influence on the second-eldest Tracy son and kept the panic at bay.

Even though they were expecting it, both men jumped when the door finally opened and Jayne entered the room.

"Is that it?" John asked, his eyes immediately riveted on the small white envelope in her hand.

Jayne nodded. "Yes," she confirmed. "I'm sorry I've been so long. This was still up in the lab so I had to go and fetch it. It was all ready to go, there was just no-one available to bring it down here." Jayne smiled to herself when she realised that John's complete attention was squarely on the little square of paper and that he probably hadn't heard a word of what she'd just said. "Are you ready?" she asked quietly and then had to ask again, slightly louder, before John dragged his gaze from the envelope up to meet her eye. "Are you ready for me to open this?" she asked for a final time and this time she received a nod in reply just as John reached out and grabbed tightly on to Jeff's hand.

"It's alright, John, I'm here," Jeff said calmly. "Just remember, whatever happens here today, you don't have to do this alone. No matter what, we'll deal with it together."

John nodded, breathing slightly faster than normal but nowhere near as bad as he had been earlier that morning. "Do it," he said quickly. "Please, just…I need to know."

Jayne carefully opened the envelope and sat and read the contents silently to herself for a moment. She then looked towards John and smiled. "You know how I said that if Jacob turned out to be your son then there'd be a lot of happy people around?" she said with a twinkle in her eye and then paused as John nodded. "There are going to be a lot of _very_ happy people around here this afternoon." John looked bewildered so she continued. "He's yours John. Jacob is your son."


	13. Chapter 13

~#~ (Chapter 13)

John clutched Jeff's hand tightly and let out a shuddering breath that came out sounding something between a strangled squeak and a groan. "Dad?" he croaked. "Oh, God, Dad."

Jeff leaned over and pulled John against his shoulder, rocking him gently from side to side. He then looked over his son's shoulder towards Jayne who mouthed 'I'll give you a minute' before slipping from the room. John remained quiet for a couple of minutes, thinking while Jeff rocked him but eventually pressed his hands gently against his father's chest so he could sit up. After the many emotional outbursts from John in the last couple of days, Jeff was very surprised to see that he was dry-eyed. "Dad," John whispered, the hoarseness in his voice betraying his emotions even if his eyes were not. "Dad, this is huge…this is…I don't even have a word for what this is."

Jeff chuckled. "Welcome to fatherhood, my boy," he said softly. "Albeit in completely different circumstances that's pretty much how I felt when Scott was born. Between the bouts of morning sickness and Scott deciding to stay put until the last possible moment I had just about the full nine months notice. It still hit me like a tonne of bricks when he finally arrived though." Jeff patted John on the shoulder. "You going to be OK?" he asked. When John nodded he stood up and held his hand out to his son. "You up for a walk?"

"I think so," John replied and then stood up carefully, flexing his knees slightly as if worried they might give way at any time. When they didn't he looked a little sheepish and then, looking around the room he suddenly realised that he and his father were alone. "Where'd Jayne go?" he asked.

"Just outside, I think," Jeff replied, reaching down and picking the test results up from the table. "She wanted to give you some time to let the news sink in and I have a feeling that she would have probably called upstairs to tell them to get a certain little person ready for visitors." He held the paper out to John who took it and studied it thoughtfully.

"My son," he said quietly. A small smile broke across his face as he slipped the paperwork back inside its envelope and looked across at Jeff. "Dad, I have a son."

Jayne chose that moment to open the door and step inside and both Tracys had the same thought that she must have been listening for an opportune moment to re-enter the room. "Yes, you do," she said brightly. "And he's waiting for you upstairs if you'd like to meet him?" She stepped back towards the door only to turn back when John and Jeff didn't move as fast as she would have liked. "Come on Daddy," she called cheekily, "Get a move on," and with that she scurried out into the corridor.

John motioned for Jeff to move only to look momentarily confused when he didn't. He re-ran Jayne's last few words back through his head again and the small smile he had on his face broke into a grin. "She means me, doesn't she," he asked Jeff.

Jeff smiled back and nodded. "She certainly does, John. She certainly does."

"Granddad, get him moving," Jayne's disembodied voice came from just out of sight, causing John and Jeff to look at one another and burst out laughing before they finally started to move.

"She's great," the younger Tracy commented in a conspiratorial whisper. "Can we keep her? I want to take her home for Gordon!"

"Gordon?" Jeff queried in just as quiet a voice. "Don't you think Gordon's got enough adoring fans already?"

"Well, yeah," John agreed. "…but she's too young for Scott and she'd have Virg for breakfast. Gordo though? I reckon he could handle her and even if it didn't work out then he'd enjoy the challenge!" John let out a yelp as he rounded the door frame and came face to face with the person they'd just been talking about. "Oops."

"And about time too," Jayne exclaimed. "I thought you two were going to stay in there all day. Come on, this way." Once again she set off down the corridor, heading towards the stairwell that would take them to the third floor where Jacob was waiting.

Jeff rested a hand on the small of John's back as they strode down the passageway side by side. "You're feeling better," he commented.

John thought for a moment and realised that the tension he'd been feeling for the last couple of days had suddenly dissolved. "Why yes. Yes, I am," he replied and then smiled again as he noticed that Jayne was now waiting for them at the bottom of the stairs.

~#~

Jayne left the two Tracys outside the nursery's security door while she popped inside to find one of the paediatric nurses who had been Jacob's carers for the previous fortnight. Once she found one, Jayne returned and much to John's dismay, ushered the two men into another small office and introduced them to the nurse. She immediately spotted the upset on John's face and moved to quickly reassured him that they just needed to quickly run through a few things before he could finally meet Jacob.

The 'few quick things' turned out to be a rundown of the injuries that Jacob had obtained in the crash that had killed his mother. Between them the two nurses explained that the boy had fractured two of the carpal bones in his left wrist and that he had also suffered a distal radius fracture on the same arm. They told the Tracys that they wouldn't have normally expected that sort of injury in a child sitting in a rearward facing car-seat but that a heavy bag, which had been on the back seat behind the driver, had been thrown onto him and this had caused the damage to his arm. The bag had proved to be a blessing in one way though because, after getting looped up around his arm, it had sheltered him from the worst of the glass that entered the car from the multiple broken windows. Jacob had ended up with heavy bruising, a deep laceration on his right leg, one on his right cheek and a small one across the top of his forehead, just below his hairline. The one on his leg was likely to scar because of where it was but the two on his face were already healing well. There was still some evidence of the black eye that the boy had been sporting for the past few weeks but other than that he had been lucky. If Rosie had strapped him in behind her that morning instead of on the passenger side of the car he would never have survived.


	14. Chapter 14

~#~ (Chapter 14)

Jayne took her leave of them soon after that, promising that she would call in later on to check on them. She left them with Kathy, the paediatric nurse and went back downstairs. Once Kathy was certain that John was as prepared as possible, she led him across the nursery and in through the wedged-open door of a private room off to one side.

Kathy smiled as she entered the room and looked down into the cot. "This gentlemen, is Jacob, our resident little angel. Jacob, this is your Daddy." She then moved away to give the new family a little privacy while still keeping an eye on them. John dropped to his knees beside the cot and squeezed his hand between the bars. He then gently captured the tiny arm that was flailing around in front of his face. Jacob immediately stopped the gentle cooing sounds that he'd been making and turned his face towards John. As the baby turned his head John gasped and heard Jeff do the same behind him. "Oh, Dad," he whispered, looking up at his father. "He looks just like Alan."

Jeff patted him on the shoulder. "He looks just like you, son. It's just that Alan happens to look like you too."

Jeff only spoke quietly but Jacob startled slightly and knocked his blue, fibreglass-coated arm against his forehead. The tot looked stunned for a moment and then his bottom lip turned down and he began to cry. Kathy started to move back across the room but John was on his feet in a shot and quickly but carefully scooped Jacob into his arms. "Hey, hey now," he cooed. "Don't do that. Your eye's just about better and you don't want to blacken the other one, now do you?"

Kathy stepped back once it was clear that John knew what he was doing. She met Jeff's eye across the room and he motioned her back towards the door. John had eyes for no-one except Jacob by that point and didn't notice either of them leave the room. He was too busy holding a totally one sided conversation with the boy about the 'nasty blue cast' on his arm.

~#~

"He's good," Kathy commented quietly to Jeff as the two watched John and Jacob from just outside the door. "And you're absolutely sure this is his first baby?" she asked incredulously.

Jeff nodded sadly. "Oh yes, I'm sure. He's had three younger brothers to practice on though. The youngest one, my Alan, was born nearly eight weeks early and it was touch and go for quite a while. He was a tiny baby for a very long time and John…well John just doted on him. It was almost like he thought that if he took his eyes off Alan for too long, he wouldn't be there when he looked back. It's the only time we ever had problems getting him to go to school and that, purely and simply, was because struggled to get him to leave the hospital."

"So what happened with this one?" Kathy questioned, nodding towards John and the baby. "If you don't mind me asking I mean? Obviously by the trouble the police had tracking him down, John hasn't been around a lot and I can't help wondering why. Please don't take offence, I'm just interested."

Jeff pondered his reply for a moment. "He didn't know," he answered eventually. "He didn't have a clue that Jacob's mother was even pregnant until the letter arrived from the solicitors a couple of days ago. The girl just disappeared. John tried to find her but she'd covered her tracks too well. She didn't want to be found but I don't know why and neither does he," Jeff nodded in John's direction. "Rosie, Jacob's mother, had no other living relatives, as far as anyone knows, so we…he…John's got to go through and close down her apartment. I haven't said anything to him yet but I have a suspicion that he might have guessed. Not much gets past him usually. Maybe when he's going through her things he might turn up something that will shed some light on why Rosie ran away. If not then I guess we'll never know. It's a shame though; he would've loved the little things about her pregnancy. He would have loved the oddness of the 3am runs to the corner store for pickles and custard, the swollen ankles and the swollen belly with the strange little movements from the life growing inside it. He wouldn't even have complained about the mood swings, the grumpiness or the name-calling during the delivery if, at the end if it all, it meant having another little Alan to care for, I'm certain of that."

Jacob chose that moment to start to become fussy. John looked momentarily panicked but then his memories of Alan as a baby overrode the worry and his part-forgotten parenting skills kicked in. He lifted Jacob gently in the air and sniffed, quickly deciding that that wasn't the problem he then scanned the room for any sign of a bottle. Kathy saw what he was doing and quickly rushed into the kitchen to fetch one.

When she returned she held her arms out for the baby but one look at John's face had her handing the bottle to him instead. Leaving him to it she then left the room to check on some of her other young patients.

~#~

John settled himself in the large padded nursing chair in the corner of the room with Jacob securely tucked in the crook of his arm. The tot looked up at him with trusting blue eyes and half a bottle of milk later he was fast asleep. Jeff walked quietly over to where John was sitting and without saying a word, the pair of them spent a long moment just watching the little boy sleep. John's stomach eventually disturbed them from their contemplations when it let out a loud rumble. "I forgot," Jeff admitted. "…that you haven't eaten anything today. It looks like you're there for the long haul so do you want me to bring something in?"

John nodded. "If you wouldn't mind, Father. Nothing too fancy though, maybe just a sandwich and a piece of fruit?"

"Still feeling a bit delicate?" Jeff asked gently and got a half-shrug in reply. "One simple sandwich and piece of fruit coming up. I'll be back in a little while." John nodded again and then watched as Jeff walked quietly from the room. As he continued to sit and stare at the doorway, John allowed his mind to drift. He marvelled at his father's calmness over the past few days when everything must have been almost as much of a shock to the older man as it had been to John. Jeff seemed to have taken everything in his stride and had pre-empted many of John's decisions as well as comforting him through his various emotional outbursts. John wasn't naïve enough to think that it was anything like over yet and he let out a long, deep sigh. He had the feeling that he was going to be needing more and more of Jeff's support over the next few weeks and he frowned slightly, feeling a little guilty about the extra strain that he was adding to his father's already stressful life.

The emotional overload of the morning was over, Jacob was a comforting warmth against his side and the chair he had sat in was very comfortable. These factors conspired together against John and all too soon he felt himself drifting away. Knowing that he wasn't going to stay awake he carefully arranged Jacob against his chest and lifted his feet onto the footrest that sat in front of his chair. He wrapped one arm around Jacob's chest, rested the other across his legs and then closed his eyes.

This was how Kathy found them when she stepped back into the room about ten minutes later.


	15. Chapter 15

~#~ (Chapter 15)

Once he left the nursery and headed down towards the canteen, Jeff got caught up several times by kind-hearted people who wanted an update on John's situation. Spencer Allan, the police officer who had spoken to them the day before, persuaded him to sit with him in the canteen and was delighted when Jeff told him that John was Jacob's biological father. He explained that John seemed absolutely smitten with Jacob and Spencer laughed out loud when Jeff described the look that John had given Kathy when she had suggested he hand the boy back to her for feeding. The two men spoke quietly for a short while before Jeff drained his coffee and wandered back into the corridor holding a small paper bag containing a shrink-wrapped pack of sandwiches, an apple and a small bar of chocolate. Spencer shook his head as the officer watched him leave. Whatever happened in the future, John and now by association, Jacob, had a foundation of solid bedrock in the form of a one Jefferson Tracy. The next few weeks were going to be trying for everyone concerned but one thing was certain, Jeff Tracy would not let his family fall.

Jeff headed for the stairwell, fully intending to go straight back up to John in the nursery but as he passed a crossroad between two corridors someone shouted his name. He backed up slightly and altered his course to head towards the call.

"Mr Tracy," the call had come from the hospital curator. "Would you mind if I have a word?" she asked. "My office is just this way." Jeff looked down at the sandwich in his hand and thought to himself that it was just as well the thing was well-wrapped or it would have been virtually inedible by the time it got to John. He then nodded and followed her inside.

"Mr Tracy," the curator began again. "I'm sorry, when I spoke to you yesterday your name sounded familiar but I couldn't work out why. I've since been informed about your…credentials and would like to apologise if I seemed a little short with you when you first arrived here. Having the boy here without anyone able to claim parental responsibility has been an administrative nightmare. Other than his immediate treatment on admission, each and every cost associated with the medicinal care that that boy…"

Jeff raised his hand and stopped her. "Jacob," he said firmly. "His name is Jacob and I'd appreciate it if you use it." The curator opened her mouth to speak but Jeff shook his head. "Also…" He paused as he realised that the curator had not once introduced herself by name and he looked at the plaque on the desk before continuing, "Ms Davidson…who I am and what I've done in the past is completely irrelevant. I came here to support my son and I shall remain here to support both him and my grandson for as long as I need to. As to the second point that you had started to make, I can give you my personal assurance that the financial cost of Jacob's stay here will not impact on your hospital in any way." Jeff stopped and pulled his wallet from his pocket before removing a card and handing it to the now worried-looking hospital curator. "This is my accountant. I will contact him later this afternoon and tell him to expect your call at some point in the next couple of days. You will find that I, my sons and any future dependants are fully insured but I will leave instructions that anything not covered, for whatever reason, is to be paid immediately. Now, will that be all? My son has not eaten anything today and I need to get back to him."

The curator nodded and watched warily as Jeff stood up. She nodded and then stood up herself and shook his hand before he left the room. She stood for a moment and wondered just when she had lost control of the conversation but gave up and shook her head. Approaching someone like Jeff Tracy about an amount of money that probably seemed trivial to him would, most likely, have been better left to someone else. Carly Davidson however was the one who was constantly under pressure to keep the hospital running to budget. It was Carly who had to decide where to draw the line on what money was spent when, where and how and it was she who had, so far, signed off on each and every dollar that had been spent on little Jacob's care. If the police had not managed to track down a parent for Jacob, or if said parent had proved unwilling or unable to take him on then, upon discharge from the hospital, the boy would have been turned over to the authorities. The hospital would undoubtedly have had to embark on a long, drawn out case to claim their money back and all of Carly's decisions would have been questioned and queried every step of the way.

The matronly woman sighed. Maybe it was for the best that she had approached Jeff when she did, even if she hadn't handled things quite as well as she might have. She now knew that Jacob was well accounted for and silently hoped that Jeff understood why she felt the need to speak to him when she did. If he didn't…Carly shuddered and wondered just how much trouble Jeff Tracy could cause her if she had inadvertently rubbed him the wrong way. 'Too late now' she thought and then walked out of her office to console herself with a hot, strong cup of coffee and the stickiest piece of cake that she could find.


	16. Chapter 16

~#~ (Chapter 16)

After leaving the curator's office Jeff literally crashed into Jayne when she and he rounded the same corner from opposing directions. She nurse immediately picked up that something had troubled him and with a bit of wheedling got him to relay the conversation that had happened between Jeff and Carly. She smiled sympathetically and assured him that the curator was really a good person but that she was being put under increasing pressure from 'higher up' to save the hospital every cent that she possibly could. The hospital management had recently put forward a proposal to build a new oncology wing but until they came up with their half of the required funds the government wouldn't supply the rest.

It was a thoughtful Jeff who finally made it back to the third floor nearly forty five minutes after he had left. He knocked gently on the security door between the corridor and the nursery and waited a moment until Kathy opened it to let him in.

Upon seeing Jeff, Kathy's face lit up and she grabbed his arm and pulled him inside with a chuckle. Jeff wondered what had got into the nurse and looked over to Jacob's door only to see it was now closed. Kathy saw where his attention was focussed and giggled. "Come this way but be quiet," she said in a hushed voice. "You just _have_ to see this."

Jeff allowed himself to be towed over to Jacob's door and followed Kathy's lead when she opened the door and motioned him forwards with a finger over her lips. He stepped just inside the room and found that someone had lowered the blinds to cut out the worst of the early afternoon sun's glare. His eyes then sought out his son and he immediately saw why Kathy was in such high spirits. John was slumped in the nursing chair with Jacob held tightly against his chest. Kathy had draped a blanket over his legs and had carefully wedged a pillow on either side of him to make sure he couldn't roll over.

Jeff reached out and put the bag with the food inside on the table near the door. He then stepped back outside and Kathy quietly pulled the door shut again. She motioned Jeff to follow her into the nurses' private kitchen where she sat down on one of the comfy chairs and pointed to the other to suggest that he did the same. He sat down with a sigh and a smile on his face before looking with interest around the homely little room. His attention was immediately drawn to a large notice board on the wall behind the door and he got back to his feet to have a look. "They're our success stories," Kathy said, rising from her seat and standing beside him. "So many of the children that we get through here are in such a bad way; getting downhearted is almost an occupational hazard. On a bad day it's all too easy to forget that there's a happy ending for most of the little people that we treat. If any of us are having a sad moment we can come and look at our little survivors. Most of the photos were taken on the day they went home but some of them have been sent in by parents with updates on how they're doing. Can you spot the latest addition? I hope you don't mind, I simply couldn't resist."

Jeff stood in front of the wall of photographs and scanned the pictures for one that might just jump out at him. By what Kathy said he had guessed roughly what he was looking for but it took him a while to find it. He smiled when he eventually did, just off centre of the board. John lay asleep in the chair with Jacob clutched tightly against his chest, a ray of sunlight fell across both their faces and the pair looked totally content. The facial similarities between father and son shone from the picture as clear as day and Jeff had to swallow the lump which formed in his throat as he stared at it. "Oh," he said in a suddenly scratchy voice. "I have to have a copy of that."

Kathy patted him on the shoulder, fully aware of the emotions that the photo had raised in Jeff. "I thought you might," she murmured quietly and then reached over to the desk and handed him the second one she had printed. "I'll put the file on a cd for you. Then, once everything's calmed down, you can get it printed out properly."

Jeff nodded. "Thank you," he said. "That's definitely one to show his brothers. They're going to pitch a fit when they find out what's going on. I'm going to have to fly back home and tell them something, sometime soon. They were pressing for information before we left but John didn't tell them much...he didn't know all that much himself at that point and I know he didn't mention the baby to them because nothing was certain..."

Kathy put a hand on Jeff's shoulder and pushed him back towards the chairs. She sat down opposite him and leaned forwards. "Three younger brothers, that's what you said isn't it?" she asked. "And they all still live at home?"

"Three younger and one older," he corrected her and then smiled and shook his head. "…and yes, they're all very much still with me. My mother and I raised the boys after my wife died and…well, I guess that they have enough to occupy themselves so they've never felt the need to leave." Jeff went quiet for a moment. "Alan's still very young but he has a sort-of girlfriend who lives…nearby. Scott, he's the eldest, is ex-military and basically lives for his job. Virgil's very introverted and would likely run a mile if approached by any female who hadn't been thoroughly vetted by Scott. Gordon…" Jeff rolled his eyes and scrubbed his hand through his hair as he tried to think of the best way to describe his second-youngest son. "…well he's…Gordon! He was an Olympic swimmer until he was sidelined by an accident and now he works for me. He's lithe, red-headed and never short of female attention and well…out of any of them I would have imagined this happening to him maybe but not the others...and certainly not John. John's away a lot, on…business. He sometimes has to go away for months at a time and is quiet, studious and likes his own company. If he's not at work then he's generally somewhere around the…house and I think that, more than anything, has made the news about Jacob just all the more shocking."


	17. Chapter 17

~#~ (Chapter 17)

Jeff was quickly beginning to realise why Scott complained that it was virtually impossible to hold a completely truthful conversation with someone other than the people who lived on Tracy Island, Lady Penelope or Parker. Jeff carried out virtually all of his business by vid-phone and rarely left the island so didn't come across the problem all that often. Scott, on the other hand, faced it just about every day in his role as public representative of International Rescue. On the public front it was merely frustrating but on the private front it often turned out to be a relationship-destroying restriction.

Scott had started to become close to two girls since International Rescue began operating. On both occasions the relationship had broken down when Scott couldn't explain what he did or why he couldn't always meet up, when and where he was supposed to. In the case of the last girlfriend, the final nail in the coffin had come when he failed to adequately explain why he had been out of touch for almost two months. Due the same oil field rescue that had been the cause of John's smoke inhalation, Scott had developed problems with his breathing and had also received a deep burn across his back. Whereas John had been able to leave the island and spend the time with Rosie, Scott had needed daily treatment in the island's infirmary when the burn became infected.

Kathy realised that Jeff's mind had wandered when the conversation suddenly petered out. He seemed to be deep in thought as he stared at the photo of John and Jacob that he had held out in front of him. Taking care not to disturb him, she slowly got up and made a couple of cups of tea. When she turned back from the kettle he had roused from his deliberations and seemed ready to talk again.

"So, what do you think the others will make of their new little nephew?" she asked. "Once they get used to the idea I mean."

Jeff snorted inelegantly. "Oh, I'm pretty sure they'll adore him...once the shock wears off. I'm a little worried that Alan will have a hard time adjusting though. As well as getting used to no longer being the baby of the family he will be losing a big part of John. No matter how hard John tries he simply isn't going to be able to give Alan the attention that he's been used to and I think that, particularly in the beginning, it's going to be extremely hard on both of them. I guess we'll have to wait and see but as I said to John earlier, whatever happens we'll deal with it together."

Kathy nodded. "That's good. I understand that finding out about Jacob hasn't been easy on John or yourself but it's clear that you both rely on your family to support you. From the way you were with John earlier it was obvious that the two of you were very close but…well, if you weren't all that close then the six of you living under one roof would never have worked. I'm sure everyone must be just tripping over themselves in the morning rush for the bathroom."

Jeff made a non-committal noise in the back of his throat and frowned, unsure quite how to reply. There was no way any of the Tracys could 'trip over' each other back on the island. When he had designed the house Jeff had made sure that every bedroom, including his own and his mother's, had its own bathroom. Each of the bedrooms had been built big enough so that the boys could remain comfortable in them, even once they were fully grown. This also meant that each of the five boys had their own personal space in which they could carry out their projects or hobbies without fear of disturbance from the others. Jeff cleared his throat, "Actually there are seven of us. My mother lives there too." He stopped and took a sip of his tea. "Would you mind if I went and sat with them?" he asked, nodding his head in the direction of the door. "If I promise to be quiet."

Kathy smiled and looked at her watch. "Of course you can," she replied. "I can't imagine the little one will sleep much longer anyway. He only took half a feed before he went off so he'll probably be wanting the rest pretty soon."

Jeff picked up his cup and got to his feet. "May I?" he asked, wiggling the cup gently from side to side.

Kathy nodded. "As long as you're careful," she agreed and then stood up and opened the door for him. "Jacob's clothes and all his supplies are in the cupboard under the window. Don't be surprised if he spits up a little when he wakes…" At Jeff's amused look she stopped. "But I don't really need to tell you all that do I?" she laughed. "Just remember that I'm nearby. If you need me just shout, not too loud mind you but call out all the same!"

Jeff chuckled and stepped from the room. He took another mouthful of tea to lower the level in the cup and then stepped across the nursery and carefully pushed the door to Jacob's room open. He pulled the door shut behind himself and put his tea on the table beside John's sandwiches before carrying the hard plastic visitor's chair across the room and sitting down beside John. The second eldest Tracy boy didn't seem to have moved a muscle since Jeff had seen him earlier and remained blissfully aware of his father's presence alongside him. Jeff then sat and used the time to silently study the angelic features of his first grandchild.

At some point in his study Jeff's mind drifted from his grandson to his own children. Within a couple of days of each of them being born, Jeff had picked a quiet moment in which to watch them sleep. He had committed every line, feature and nuance of his tiny sons to memory and thought of this as a vital part of the bonding process.


	18. Chapter 18

~#~ (Chapter 18)

With a start Jeff realised that he was being watched. Jacob had awoken and from his comfortable spot on John's chest was staring up at his grandfather with wide trusting eyes. Jeff smiled and slid from the chair so he was crouching at eye level with the tiny boy. "Well hello there, little man," he whispered. "Did you have a nice nap?" He stopped and looked up at John who didn't stir. "I think you wore your Daddy out," he chuckled, speaking in a hushed tone so as not to disturb his sleeping son. "I think he could do with staying asleep for a little bit longer so let's see if we can get you up without waking him, shall we?"

Jeff moved slowly so as not to startle Jacob and leant over the boy so he could free him from John's grasp. Once he had carefully adjusted John's grip on his son he lifted Jacob clear and discovered that both the boy and his father were extremely damp. "Oh dear," he whispered to Jacob. "You I can do something about but your Daddy…well I guess we'll make sure to bring a change of clothes when we come tomorrow." Jeff knew that John would throw himself whole-heartedly into caring for Jacob now that he had finally met him and that keeping his second-eldest son away from the hospital was going to be nigh on impossible. "You just wait," he murmured to Jacob as he leaned down to pull the blanket higher up John's body to cover the damp patch on his shirt. He had been in a similar situation to John's several times over the years and knew that a rapidly cooling shirt could lead to a sudden, rude awakening.

Jeff carried Jacob to the changing station by the window where Kathy had told him Jacob's supplies were kept. He placed the boy on the changing mat and gently held him down with one hand while rummaging in the cupboard with the other. He spoke quietly the while time while he effortlessly stripped, cleaned and redressed the little boy. "Your Daddy is going to be so good to you now that he knows you exist. He's going to want to be here every minute of every day but we…you and me, we're going to have to be firm with him. We're going to have to make sure that he eats, that he sleeps and that he generally remembers to look after himself while he's caring for you. When your Uncle Alan was born your Daddy wanted to be with him all time even though he was only little himself. Your grandmother and I..." Jeff paused and felt guilty a pang as he thought back. "The authorities tried to say that we weren't looking after your Daddy properly and that they would…how did they put it? Ah yes, they would be forced to 'take measures' if we didn't. They seemed to completely ignore the fact that the two of your uncles who went to the same school were fine and that said uncles were regularly seen having to coax your father to eat, sleep and play. They weren't willing to listen or to understand that Johnny was just so worried about his sick baby brother that he wasn't able to spare a single thought for himself." Jeff fastened the last popper on the pale green sleep-suit that he'd dressed Jacob in and then lifted the tot up to rest against his shoulder. "Still, it all worked out for the best in the end. I'd always had my worries about how they were going to cope with your Uncle Gordon but the way they treated us when Alan was born proved to me that they didn't deserve to even try. We moved your Daddy and the others to a different school and never looked back."

Jeff heard rustling behind him and turned to chuckle at a bleary-eyed John who was examining the damp patch on his shirt at the same time as trying to extract himself from the pillows packed around him on the chair.

John finally detangled himself from the pillows, pulled the blanket off his legs and sat up properly. After rubbing his eyes and scrubbing his hands through his hair he addressed his father. "That was because of me?" he asked. "None of us ever knew why we had to switch schools so suddenly." He looked to where Jeff was silhouetted against the window and noticed that the older man was swaying ever so gently from side to side. "I remember Mama standing like that with Alan and Gordon," he said fondly. "I also remember her helping me to get Alan in that position that so I could rock him to sleep. He used to drool all down my neck when I held him like that."

Jeff chuckled as he remembered John walking around and around the house with Alan. When he was a baby Alan frequently had days where he refused to settle unless he was in somebody's arms and John was, more often than not, the one who ended up carrying him about.

"You never minded though," Jeff commented, knowing that John had made the most of every moment with his baby brother once he had finally been released from hospital. "Alan could have spat up all over you and you would have never even have batted an eyelid. That boy could do no wrong in your eyes."

John let out an indignant snort. "I wasn't that bad…was I?"

Jeff crossed the room and headed back to his chair. He slid Jacob down his body and onto his knee as he sat down and then turned the little boy outwards so he was facing his father. Jacob reached out towards John and made a grab for his shirt but John intercepted the little hand and made the boy giggle when, complete with sound effects, he pretended to eat it.

Jeff chuckled and when John met his eye he laughed. "…you were saying?"

John dropped his eyes but kept hold of Jacob's captured hand. "I…I kind of was wasn't I?" he said sheepishly. "It's just…he was so…and...at the hospital…" John gave up and shrugged.


	19. Chapter 19

~#~ (Chapter 19)

Jeff understood what John was trying to say even though he couldn't get the words out properly. "Don't worry, I understand, son. I don't know if it's a normal family thing or an inbuilt Tracy thing but we've all been affected by it at different times of our lives. Just think how Scott and Virgil were after Gordon's accident; how they sat and read to him when he lay in the coma, how they constantly worked together to stop him sliding into depression and how they stopped him exploding by forcing him to vent his anger at them. If the worst had happened and he'd been stuck in a wheelchair for the rest of his life, he wouldn't have wanted for anything. Those two wouldn't have let him sit and worry or stew over what would happen in the future. They would have stayed with him through anything until he was fully equipped and able to care for himself. He would have never been alone, even after he finally settled into whatever niche he had carved for himself or whatever job he would have eventually found."

John nodded silently thinking back to that dark time. The family had spent several months of not knowing whether Gordon would even survive the injuries he had sustained in the hydrofoil accident. The doctors and medical staff had prepared them for the worst, explaining that the longer a patient was trapped in a coma the less likely it was that they would ever wake up. The family never gave up hope and eventually Gordon had fought his way back to consciousness. Once he was awake and aware the focus moved on to whether he would ever regain the use of his legs. This proved to be the subject of great debate between the specialists for many weeks but with the unending support of his family, Gordon had finally walked, albeit with the aid of a cane, out of the hospital under his own steam.

John nodded, sighed and then held his arms out for Jacob only to be met with a quiet, "Oh, no you don't." He stopped, dropped his arms, shuffled back on the chair and looked confused.

"How much of our…" Jeff paused and waved his free hand between Jacob and himself, "…little chat did you hear?"

John shrugged. "Not much, I don't think. From somewhere around the school saying you weren't looking after me properly. How dare they say that?"

"We're not getting into that, John," Jeff replied softly. "It's in the distant past and was dealt with at the time. Suffice to say that you've never had much colour or weight about you and after Alan was born you lost far too much of both. We, your mother and I that is, asked the hospital to take a look at you but everyone agreed that it was most likely temporary and that as Alan got better you would too. You proved them all right as well. When Alan got home and settled down, so did you."

John nodded quietly. "So what…?" he copied Jeff's hand-waving motion between his father and Jacob.

"Oh yes," Jeff chuckled. "Several hours ago I left to get you something to eat. Do you remember that?" John shook his head and then changed his mind and nodded. "Well, Jacob and I kind of decided that, between us, we are going to make sure that you do actually eat. We're also going to make sure that you sleep and take care of yourself. We are not - and I repeat, NOT - going to have a repeat performance of the months after Alan's birth. Your mother and I could easily pick you up and put you to bed when you were small and fell asleep at the dinner table, it wouldn't be so easy now…or certainly not for me. I'm sure Scott could manage it or maybe Virgil but neither of them are here so it's irrelevant. Are you understanding what I'm trying to say?"

John smiled and then captured both of Jacob's hands in his own. "I understand, Father…and I promise I'll try. With the pair of you on my case I couldn't do anything else," John gently jiggled Jacob's hands back and forth in a clapping motion which made the little boy squeal in delight. This in turn made both Jeff and John laugh.

John met his father's smiling eyes."I'll be fine, Father, really I will...In fact no, _I_ won't be fine, _we'll_ be fine, all eight of us."

"Tracys united against the world?" Jeff chuckled with a grin. "That sounds good, son…that sounds _real_ good."

~#~

John got up to investigate the bag of food that Jeff had collected for him and caught a glimpse of his reflection in the mirror that hung above the table. Upon leaning forwards and studying his image he could see why Jeff may have started to worry. John's usually coiffed hair was in disarray and had a flat spot at the back from where it had been resting against the chair. He had dark smudges under his still slightly red-rimmed eyes and despite having been asleep for the past couple of hours John thought he still looked tired. With his right hand he pinched his chin and moved his head back and forth to view himself from all sides.

"Father, when did I get so old?" he asked.

Jeff had been surreptitiously watching his son as he scrutinised himself in the mirror. At least John now seemed to understand Jeff's earlier comments. "You didn't get old, son," he said, seemingly putting all his attention on Jacob but actually keeping half and eye on John. "You're just having an off week. Why don't you go and freshen up before you eat? I'm sure you'll feel better if you're a bit less, um..." Jeff raised his head and waved an arm in John's general direction. "You know what I mean."

John chuckled and pulled at his shirt. "Thanks…I think. Will you be OK here?"

Jeff had already turned back to Jacob and had started a game of 'Whoops I dropped the baby'. Jacob seemed to think it was the funniest thing in the world each time Jeff said 'Whoops', pulled a silly face and then gently tipped him over.

John rolled his eyes when he realised that he had completely lost his father's attention. "I guess you'll be fine," he murmured and then left to find a bathroom which he could clean up in.

~#~

He quickly washed up as best he could and used his damp fingers to drag his hair back into some semblance of order. He started to dab at his crumpled lilac shirt with a tissue and then gave up and removed it, leaving his decidedly more presentable white undershirt on view. He finally got to eat the sandwich, apple and chocolate bar about ten minutes later.


	20. Chapter 20

~#~ (Chapter 20)

Jeff and John spent the rest of the afternoon in the nursery, playing with, feeding and generally bonding with Jacob. The six month old boy proved to be a cheerful, placid child and seemed to be very laid-back. Jeff couldn't help but comment, several times, on how much he was like John had been as a baby.

They finally left the hospital when Kathy popped in to tell them that she needed to start her evening routine, prior to going home. Visiting times in the nursery were extremely flexible but parents were requested not to stay too late so that the nurses could keep the children to some sort of routine. Generally this meant that the parents would leave before their evening meal and the nurses would then feed the children, bathe them and put them to bed.

Jeff and John once again ate their dinner in the restaurant attached to their hotel. Jeff ordered for both of them and was pleasantly surprised when John managed to eat virtually everything on his plate. The two men then ordered coffee and remained at their table talking for another half an hour. Once the coffee had gone and the bill had been signed, they took a short walk in the pleasant evening air and then returned to their rooms.

John bustled around his room for a while, not quite sure what to do with himself but feeling that he wasn't quite ready to sleep yet. He sat and tried to concentrate on a book but his mind kept wandering elsewhere and eventually he gave up and got ready for bed. When he was changed he sat at the head of his bed and got out the envelope that had brought so much disturbance to his previously ordered life. He pulled the photos from the inside the folds of the letter and laid them out on the bed in front of him before pulling out his wallet and carefully removing two treasured and slightly dog-eared pictures. These two photographs had travelled with John for a long time. They had been with him on his first trip into space, courtesy of NASA and also each and every trip thereafter. They also accompanied him on every rotation on Thunderbird 5.

The first picture had been taken by Jeff at Virgil's graduation. Scott had arranged leave from the Air Force so that he could attend his middle brother's graduation and John had booked a fortnight off at the same time so he was able to spend some time with him. Virgil had been ecstatic that all four of his brothers could share his big day and stood in the centre of the photo beaming with pride, his arms around Alan and Gordon who stood on either side of him. Further out, John stood beside Alan while Scott stood next to Gordon and both older boys had a hand on one of Virgil's shoulders. The photo had been lovingly dubbed 'A rare moment of unity' and all the boys plus their father carried a copy of it.

The second picture was a duplicate of one that sat in pride of place on Jeff's desk. It was of the five boys again but this time accompanied by their mother and had been taken at the beginning of the skiing holiday that had ended so tragically. Once again Virgil was in the centre of the picture with Scott, Gordon and Alan on his right and John and Lucille on his left. The boys were wrapped up well in preparation for their first outing on the ski-runs and had been waiting for their mother to put on her coat when Jeff asked to take their photo. The picture had always had a bittersweet feeling to it, in that it was a happy family shot but was the last photo ever taken of Lucille Tracy and her boys. Just three days after it was taken the family had been torn apart by the avalanche that had taken Lucille from them. John knew for a fact that Scott carried his own small copy of the photo wherever he went and he suspected that Gordon and Alan might as well. Virgil had too many agonising memories of that particular holiday so he had hidden his framed one away and carried no copy.

~#~

John added his pictures to the ones on the bed and sat quietly contemplating the faces staring back at him. Jeff found him like this a while later when he popped his head through the bathroom door to check on John and wish him goodnight. When he saw what John was looking at he slipped back into his own room and returned with two photos from his own wallet. One was of the five boys and Lucille sitting on the sofa, it had been taken about half an hour after the family had finally brought Alan home from the hospital for the first time. Jeff's second photo was him and Lucille on their wedding day and had been printed in traditional sepia tones. "Thanks," John whispered. "She was beautiful wasn't she?"

Jeff looked quietly down the row of photographs before responding. He wasn't sure if John's quiet utterance meant his mother or Rosie so he just answered with "That she was, son. That she was."

John seemed alright, if contemplative, so Jeff decided to leave him to his musings. "Don't stay up all night," he murmured and patted John's shoulder before turning back towards the bathroom.

"I won't. Goodnight, Father." John's reply was accompanied by a rustle of covers and by the time Jeff reached the door John was laying beneath the covers with his head on a pillow. The pictures were in a neat stack on the bedside table and a photo of Rosie, one that had come in the solicitor's letter, was propped up against a glass where John could see it.

"Goodnight, John. Sleep well."


	21. Chapter 21

~#~ (Chapter 21)

John woke up at just past 5am the next morning. Unable to get back to sleep, he dressed and went out for a run. He disturbed Jeff when he started the shower running an hour and a half later and then handed the bathroom over to his father while he got dressed. He packed a change of clothes into a bag and ran it down to the car before knocking on Jeff's door and finding that he was ready.

The two men went down to breakfast in the hotel and this time, Jeff had no problems getting John to eat. John's run, twinned with the lack of uncertainties from the previous morning, meant that the younger Tracy was more than ready when the food arrived.

~#~

John drove the rented car to the hospital with Jeff taking the passenger seat for a change. While they were travelling Jeff took the time to look over his second-eldest son. John was showing no signs of the frantic, almost-panic of the morning before and seemed, on the surface, to be almost back to his usual laid-back self.

John was well aware that he was being scrutinised but remained silent until he pulled into a parking bay in the hospital car park. After he switched off the ignition he turned to Jeff. "I'm OK, Father, really I am. I…I think the not knowing…the 'what ifs', if you will, I think that was what did me in yesterday. Now that I know Jacob is my son…" John stopped and shook his head, "Wow, it still sounds kind of strange saying that. Now I know that he's mine I can start looking forwards again. The last few days I've been stuck in some…some kind of limbo. I couldn't go forwards, I couldn't go backwards. I guess I just couldn't go anywhere before I knew for sure. If he hadn't been mine, if he'd been…I don't know what I would have done or what I would have thought if it had turned out that he'd been someone else's all along. I don't even know what I would have been allowed to do if he hadn't been mine. It's the main reason I went out this morning, to clear my head so I could think. Lying in bed, in that quiet room, everything just started piling onto me and I couldn't get everything into any sort of order. I…I don't know why running helps but it does!"

Jeff wondered briefly about the discussion about running that he'd had with John just a few days before. If running was a coping mechanism then was that why John felt he had to run around and around Thunderbird 5 every morning? He put a hand on John's shoulder and squeezed. "Looking forwards, remember?" he said gently. "There are no ifs any more because Jacob…" Jeff raised his eyebrows and tilted his head towards John in the same way that he had whenever he'd wanted the boys to finish a sentence for him. "Jacob is…?"

"A Tracy?" John said hesitantly, not quite sure exactly what answer his father was expecting.

Jeff snorted. "'Mine' was what I was looking for but yes, that's just as good. Jacob is definitely a Tracy."

John smiled and then a thoughtful, far away expression appeared on his face. "What if he's not…a Tracy I mean? He might be a Sampson." He stopped and looked puzzled. "That officer, what was his name? Spencer? He said they had his birth certificate. Did he say where? And how do we contact him so we can find out?"

"Whoa, whoa," Jeff held out the hand that wasn't resting on John's shoulder in order to stop the constant flow of questions. Even though his son looked and sounded relatively calm Jeff had a suspicion that it wouldn't take all that much to reduce John to tears again, no matter how hard he was trying to be strong. "Let me deal with that?" he suggested. "I've spoken to Spencer a couple of times over the past few days and I have his badge number as well as the number for the station. I can always take the car and leave you here with Jacob if I need to go out. Would you be OK with that?"

John smiled sadly. "Yeah," he replied. "I…thank you. I kind of wanted to spend the day with him without having to think about everything else that needs to be done. I guess I stopped and thought for too long."

Jeff gave his shoulder another squeeze before replying. "It's inbuilt," he said. "You've been over-thinking things for as long as I can remember. Now you need to stop thinking and listen to me, I'll tell you what we're going to do. We…both of us, you and me, _we_ are going to get out of the car, go into the hospital and find your son. We, again that's both of us, are going to spend some time with him and then _I_ will go out into the great wide world and try to get some answers."

John sighed deeply and then thought back over what Jeff had just said and snorted. "Great wide world?" he repeated. "That's what? A five, maybe ten mile section of world? Twenty at most if you want to include the hotel as well?"

His father nodded vaguely and got out of the car without answering. John's original train of thought had been effectively derailed and Jeff was happy with that.

John climbed out of the car and pushed the door closed behind him. He got half way around the front of the car before stopping, turning back round and opening the rear door. He pulled out the bag of clothes that he'd packed earlier and slung it over one shoulder. He then shut the door again, activated the alarm to lock the car and strolled over to Jeff. "In case you go out," he explained. "If you take the car and the bag then I'm guaranteed to need something out of it."

Jeff nodded and then walked towards the hospital with his son by his side. 'Not completely derailed,' he thought. 'Just a little diverted.'


	22. Chapter 22

~#~ (Chapter 22)

A troubling thought dawned on Jeff after his conversation with John in the car but he quietly kept the fact from his son so as not to upset him unnecessarily. He stayed with John and Jacob for several hours before finally leaving them to go and 'track down Jacob's birth certificate' and he also planned to get answers to his own question at the same time. He knew that he could possibly get his answers by asking around at the hospital but decided it was probably easier to deal with everything in one go at the police station.

Jeff called the station and was told that Spencer Allan had left less than ten minutes before. They suggested that Jeff made his way in to them and they would call Spencer back to meet him there.

~#~

Spencer drove up just as Jeff was getting out of the car and the two men walked into the police station together. Spencer punched a code into the security door beside the incident desk and ushered Jeff inside. The room that Jeff found himself in seemed to be halfway between an office and an interview room and was clad in garish green and yellow wallpaper. There was a worn but comfortable-looking sofa along one wall along with a mismatched pair of sofa-style chairs, one on either side of the door. A large, oak desk had been pushed up against the far wall and a desk chair with a missing wheel sat upturned on top of it. Jeff unconsciously turned his nose up when he caught sight of a long-dried stain on the floor and he found himself hoping that it had once been coffee but realising it could have easily been something infinitely more disagreeable.

"Family room," Spencer explained quietly. "…but I'm afraid it's seen better days. It's supposed to be a less threatening area where we explain to parents or relatives why we have detained their sons or daughters and it's is also where lost…or rather found, children wait to be picked up by their respective carers." Spencer looked around the room, shrugged and dropped down into one of the sofa chairs. "What can I do for you today, Mr Tracy?" he asked as he motioned with his hand to suggest that Jeff sat on the couch.

Jeff shook himself and sat down. "Two things," he replied. "One is a request from John and the other is something that's been bothering me all morning."

"OK," Spencer nodded. "Let me go and fetch the file and then we'll see what we can do about finding some answers for you."

~#~

Spencer returned just a couple of minutes later carrying two mugs of coffee in one hand and some sachets of creamer, sugar and a couple of stirrers in the other. He put everything down on the desk and handed one of the coffees to Jeff before pulling a thick file of papers out from where it had been tucked under his arm. He then poured the contents of two creamer sachets into the other cup of coffee and sank in the sofa chair nearest to Jeff.

Jeff took a sip of his coffee, not worrying about sugar or creamer. He watched as Spencer drunk a little of his own drink and then waited until the other man had put the mug gently on the floor beside the leg of his chair before he motioned to the file. "Ready?" he asked.

Spencer nodded. "What do you want to know first? I can't guarantee to answer everything but I'll do what I can."

"That's all I ask," Jeff said, nodding gently. "I'll start with John's request first because I'm pretty sure the answer will be sitting in that folder." Spencer nodded so he continued. "You mentioned that you had obtained a copy of Jacob's birth certificate from the refuge where he was born. John would like a copy of it too. He currently doesn't know anything about his son other than that he is definitely his son and that his name is Jacob. What was bothering him this morning was that he doesn't know whether the boy has his surname or Rosie's and…I'm not sure whether John's thought about it or not but he doesn't even know his own son's exact date of birth. We know Jacob's about six months old which obviously agrees with John…visiting Rosie but that's about as much as we know."

Spencer leafed through the papers in the file before finally issuing a small exclamation of 'ah, ha' and pulling out a sheet of paper. "Yes, I have it here," he announced and replaced it on top of the file. "I'll make a copy in just a moment. Can we see if I can answer your query now, sir?"

Jeff nodded, slightly disappointed that he hadn't physically got his hands on the birth certificate but happy that, before the end of the day, John would have an answer as to what surname Rosie had given to little Jacob. "My query concerns Ms Sampson herself," he said with a frown.

"Oh? In what way?" Spencer queried, rifling through the file again until he found the accident report and Rosie's death certificate. He then raised his eyebrows to Jeff who seemed to be struggling for words. "Just ask, Mr Tracy. I promise I'll answer it if I can."

Jeff let out a heavy sigh. "It's just…" He stopped and grasped for words again before giving up and just asking the question in the most basic way he could. "I want you to tell me someone gave that girl a proper send-off…that she had some sort of dignified funeral prior to burial or cremation. Please tell me that she's not still lying on a slab somewhere in the hospital morgue."

Spencer was shocked, he'd had no clue what Jeff was going to ask him but he certainly hadn't expected it to be something like that. "Uh…" he started rummaging through the papers again, only to realise that Jeff hadn't quite finished.

"John's been through so much in the last couple of days and I haven't broached the apartment business with him yet. If I have to tell him he's got to bury the mother of his child…" Jeff's words dried up as he ran through that particularly unpleasant scenario in his head.

Spencer finished his slightly frantic searching through the file and looked up at Jeff. "I'm afraid there's nothing in here, Mr Tracy," he said. "Would you mind if I go and make some calls? See if I can find anything out?"

Jeff nodded vaguely, picking his coffee cup off the floor with shaking hands and taking a large gulp. He looked up and met Spencer's eyes as the officer rose to his feet. "Burying the love of my life was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do and it's something that I've always hoped that none of my sons would ever have to face."

Spencer nodded sadly. He had wondered about the fact that Jeff and John were unaccompanied but now he vaguely remembered reading a newspaper article many years before about an accident claiming the life of the great Jefferson Tracy's wife.


	23. Chapter 23

~#~ (Chapter 23)

Spencer returned after almost twenty minutes with a mixture of sympathy and frustration etched into the expression on his face. "I'm sorry for the wait, Mr Tracy," he said as he retook his seat and placed the folder, along with an envelope and a new bunch of paperwork, on his knee. "I wasn't expecting it to take so long but I did eventually manage to get an answer for you."

Jeff raised his eyebrows, "I'm not going to like this, am I?" he asked quietly. During his years of business Jeff had become adept at reading the unbidden signals that people gave out in their body language and knew that Spencer was both disturbed and upset by what he had found out.

Spencer shook his head. "No, Mr Tracy, I'm afraid you're not." He paused and chewed his top lip for a moment as he carefully chose his next words. "It could be worse," he said eventually. "I found out that Miss Sampson…Rosemary, is no longer in the hospital morgue. She underwent a post-mortem not long after arrival at the hospital and her cause of death was confirmed to be purely due to the automobile crash. Apart from the injuries sustained at the time of the accident Rosemary was in good health, although the pathologist noted that she had a long-healed break to her left leg, two to her right arm and that she bore a deep scar across her forehead. The notes also say that the frontal bone seemed unaffected by whatever trauma caused the scarring and that the breaks in her arm and leg had been well-set and would have given no restrictions in everyday life."

Spencer looked up from the papers and across towards Jeff who looked back at him with a small frown on his face. He was obviously listening intently to what he was being told but was running things through in his head at the same time. As Spencer watched Jeff reached up pinched the bridge of his nose tightly between the thumb and forefinger of his left hand and then spread the fingers to scrub along his cheekbones, chin and neck before dropping his hand back into his lap and focussing back on the other man with a small shake of his head.

"You doing OK there, Mr Tracy?" the officer asked. "Would you like another drink or something for your head?"

Jeff snorted and shook his head again. "That obvious?" he asked. When Spencer shrugged he smiled. "I'll be fine. Let's get this over with and I can spend the afternoon working out how I'm going to explain it all to John. So, after the post-mortem…Rosie was moved? You already said she's not in the hospital and she has obviously not been laid to rest or this discussion wouldn't be happening. So where is she?"

Spencer nodded sadly and returned his gaze to the notes on his knee. "Once the post-mortem was complete she remained in the morgue for nearly a week before her body was moved to a local funeral home. She is due to remain there until a mandatory four weeks after death, as an…" Spencer stopped and screwed up his nose in distaste, "…as an unclaimed cadaver. If she remains unclaimed past that time then her body will be cremated and the ashes scattered in the public gardens surrounding the crematorium."

Jeff pinched his nose again and with his face muffled by his hand he groaned before sitting upright again and addressing Spencer. "OK, so we've got what? The best part of two weeks before that happens?" Spencer nodded in reply. "God, could this week get any worse? I mean, life's never straightforward but it was a heck of a lot simpler last week and the only good thing to come out of the last few days is Jacob. Oh…" Jeff paused and pulled out his wallet. He'd put Kathy's photo of John and Jacob into it after giving John his photos the night before and he held the picture out for Spencer to see. "Kathy took it for the nurses' wall; she said she just couldn't resist it. I've just realised that's the only picture I've got of Jacob and it's something I'm going to have to rectify over the next couple of days. My camera got left on the plane so I'm going to call at the airport to fetch it on the way back to the hospital. John will want pictures and I'm going to need photographic evidence for when I finally get around to telling the other four boys about what's going on here."

Spencer smiled. Just the act of getting the photograph out and talking about Jacob had reduced the stress lines around Jeff's eyes and the officer was glad to see it. Jeff clearly doted upon his boys and it was very obvious that Jacob had immediately been given a place within the tight family group. Spencer thought it was sad that Rosie had kept the very existence of Jacob a secret from John for so long because, looking at Jeff, he was certain that the young woman would have also found her own niche under the Tracy family umbrella. "I…I took the liberty of copying the details for you," he said quietly. "…of the funeral home, I mean. I kind of…assumed…"

"You assumed right," Jeff assured him, nodding. "No way is the mother of my only grandson having a modern-day pauper's funeral. She'll have some sort of service, a cremation and then I would guess that John might want her to come home with us, seeing as there is nothing really tying her to either this city…or even this country for that matter."

Spencer nodded. "John will need to make contact with Hines & Huberts to get the appropriate paperwork sorted out. I believe that, as father of her child, it is relatively straight forward for John to take over the whole of Miss Sampson's estate. Once that's done, he can sign to give you full access to any accounts and documents so that you can act on his behalf."

Spencer was unsurprised when Jeff nodded, stood up and held his hand out for the envelope. The Tracy patriarch then shook the officer's hand and promised to be in touch before leaving the police station and driving away in his rental car.


	24. Chapter 24

~#~ (Chapter 24)

After he got in the car Jeff made sure Spencer had given him the copy of Jacob's birth certificate along with the other paperwork. He half pulled the papers from the envelope and flicked through them until he spotted the words 'Certificate of Birth', he then pushed everything back together and put the envelope on the back seat; it was John's prerogative to look through the certificate before Jeff.

Jeff drove to the airport and retrieved his camera from the plane. He had a brief chat with a couple of the airport engineers and discovered that one of them had studied with Virgil at the Denver School of Advanced Technology. Jeff promised to pass on his regards to Virgil and then made his way carefully back to the hospital.

~#~

Kathy let Jeff into the nursery but explained that John had taken Jacob into the hospital garden for some fresh air. Jacob was still under the hospital's care so both father and son were now wearing tagged bands that would trigger an alarm if they were removed or taken outside of the hospital grounds. As well as being tagged, the bands were also colour-coded and the hospital ran a stop on sight policy for any banded child not accompanied by their corresponding banded adult.

Jeff was pleasantly surprised at the level of technology being used to keep the children safe and thought it was nice to know that the hospital took their duty of care so seriously. The fact that they had allowed John to take Jacob outside pleased him as well although he was a little upset when Kathy informed him that John had left without eating lunch. The nurse explained that the bands would work perfectly well in the hospital cafeteria and suggested that Jeff might want to track down John and Jacob and drag them down there for something to eat. She told him that John had fed Jacob a very messy lunch before taking him into the garden but that the boy could have a soft banana or yoghurt for a mid-afternoon snack if he seemed hungry.

Kathy disappeared and returned a couple of moments later with a bright purple strap and a clip board. She explained that this was the twin to the band that John was wearing and was matched to the ones that Jacob had around his right wrist and left ankle. Jeff added his signature to the board beneath John's and held out his arm so Kathy could clip the band onto his wrist.

Once that was done Jeff was free to go. He patted his pocket to make sure he still had the little digital camera and then strolled down to the hospital garden to find the others.

~#~

The heavily scented garden was a long thin strip of land that ran along the entire wall of one side of the main hospital building. The grass was neatly clipped and evenly green in colour and the flowerbeds were covered in a riot of brightly coloured shrubs and plants that even Kyrano would have been proud to call his own.

A winding path wandered across the middle of the lawn towards a large marble fountain in the centre of the garden and Jeff automatically followed it. When he came level with the fountain he stopped and looked around.

It didn't take him long to find John, who had seen him coming. The young man was sitting on the ground with his back leaning on the trunk of a large, red maple tree. Jacob, who was clearly asleep, lay across his chest with his head on John's shoulder and John in turn had his cheek resting against his son's soft, blonde hair. As he saw Jeff looking around, John carefully raised a hand and waved until he was seen.

Jeff made his way over and sat down beside them. "Not quite what I was expecting," he said quietly, as he leaned back against the tree. "A lot of time and effort obviously went into the design and planning of this area. The effect is fantastic but I'm sure glad I'm not the one to have to maintain it. That grass…"

"Don't let Kyrano hear you talking like that," John murmured. "I know he's proud of his lawn but he's still grumbling that that little square of grass needs more care and attention than virtually anything else on the island."

Jeff smiled and nodded. Kyrano's long standing fight with his grass had amused Jeff and the boys ever since Tin-Tin and her family had moved to the island. The entire lawn had been ripped up several times so it could be reseeded with a different variety of grass and Kyrano had now, just about, got it so he was happy with it.

"So…" John started, changing the subject. "Did you get it?"

Jeff nodded. "I got it," he replied. "I also got all sorts of other things that we need to go through. I thought we could do it all after dinner so I've left everything in the car."

"Oh," John said, sounding a little disappointed. "OK. I…I don't suppose you…"

Jeff shook his head. "No, I didn't look and I don't know, if that's what you were going to ask. Spencer knew why you wanted the copy but he didn't tell me anything."

John nodded carefully, brushing his cheek back and forth against Jacob's hair. "It shouldn't really matter though, should it? It's only a name…only a word. Even if he's not officially a Tracy he's still part of me…still part of my family."

"_Our_ family, John," Jeff said quietly, patting him on the arm. "He's part of _our_ family."

John nodded and lifted his head from Jacob's hair to meet Jeff's eye to find nothing but love and support shining back at him. "Dad, I want to ask you something but I want an honest answer. OK?"

Jeff looked puzzled by the question but nodded. "Feel free, ask away."

John fixed his gaze onto a speck of dirt on his right knee. "How come you didn't hit the roof?" he asked. "When you read the letter, I mean. You were always so…so determined that we'd do everything in the right order…no overnight stays, no sex before marriage, that sort of thing. I know I'm not explaining myself very well but well, how come you didn't tear strips off me the moment I got back?"

Jeff closed his eyes, shook his head and sighed deeply. The thought of reprimanding John hadn't even crossed his mind when he'd read the letter. The rest of the contents had disturbed the Tracy father far more than the fact that John had possibly got a girl pregnant out of wedlock. "What good would it have done?" he asked. "To have upset you even more? No matter whether the pregnancy happened accidentally or deliberately, it had already happened. Jacob had already been born and Rosie had already died. At the time the more worrying thing was whether Jacob really was yours and if so, where he was and exactly how he was. You might not believe me, I know I didn't handle it very well but I was trying to take your feelings into account along with everything else. I know you, John. You throw yourself into everything you do whole-heartedly. Casual relationships? That's just not you. Gordon maybe, but not you. If it was true that you had entered into a relationship with Rosie, one serious enough to have possibly fathered her child, then I was expecting you to be utterly devastated by her death. If it had been me on the receiving end of that letter and it had been my…significant other who had been taken from me so suddenly…" Jeff paused as his words brought back unpleasant memories and he sucked in a deep, calming breath before continuing. "Let's just say, I know how I would feel…and the last thing I would have wanted was to be bawled at the moment I stepped through the door."

The two men sat quietly for a moment while John absorbed Jeff's words. "Oh," he said eventually. "I…I…um…" He fell quiet again and then a small smile quirked his lips as he looked over to Jeff who had raised his head to watch him. "So, Gordon?" he asked.

"Is way overdue for a talking to," Jeff replied, with an expression of light-hearted trepidation on his face. "And I might just give Alan a little refresher course on the rules while I'm at it. I know you all think I keep him on too tight a leash but it's for his own good. Tin-Tin's too close for me to do anything but worry."

~#~

Jeff and John remained beneath the tree, talking quietly, until Jacob awoke from his slumber with a large, wet belch. Jeff laughed at how quickly John had learned to adapt when the younger man immediately pulled a large handkerchief from his pocket to clean up his son's dribble. Jeff then dragged the others down to the cafeteria to eat and by the time they got back to the nursery, all three of them needed a change of clothes.

~#~

Jeff, John and Jacob spent the remainder of the afternoon in the nursery before the two adults were, once again, persuaded to leave by the nurses.

Jeff passed John the keys as they left, figuring that the easiest way to keep his son's mind and fingers away from the envelope was to make him drive the car. The ploy worked although it was clear from John's expression that he knew exactly why Jeff had suddenly designated him as driver.

As Jeff got in the car he covered the envelope with his jacket and refrained from mentioning it. He wanted John to be as relaxed as possible when they went through the notes that Spencer had given him and decided that they were going out for an expensive dinner before tackling the paperwork.


	25. Chapter 25

~#~ (Chapter 25)

One very good meal and half a bottle of fine wine later the two men returned to the hotel. Jeff went to the car to retrieve the paperwork while John waited for him in the lobby. The pair then climbed the stairs, entered Jeff's room and sat down, John on the sofa which sat under the window and Jeff on the comfy desk chair which he placed near to John.

John held his hand out for the envelope, only to be met with an "Oh, no you don't," from Jeff. "I know what's in here, you don't. A lot of it won't make sense out of context so give me a minute to sort it out." He removed the papers from the envelope and rifled through them until he found the copy of Jacob's birth certificate. Being careful not to read it he pulled it from the pile and held it out to John who tentatively tugged it from his grasp. Jeff then went back to shuffling the papers around to give John a moment to read through and absorb the information on the certificate.

A short gasp told Jeff that John had found what he was looking for although from the non-descript noise he couldn't tell whether the discovery was good or bad. He tried to meet John's eyes but the young man continued to scan the page for another couple of minutes before he looked up.

A sad smile briefly crossed Johns face. "Do you remember what Kathy said? The very first thing she said when she introduced us to Jacob?" he asked.

Jeff thought back for a moment. "This is Jacob, our resident little angel."

John nodded. "She didn't know how right she was," he murmured and smiled the same sad smile again before handing the piece of paper back to Jeff. "He's not a Tracy, Dad…not at the moment but he is and always will be, Rosie's little angel."

Jeff had a confused frown on his face as he took the certificate back. He didn't entirely understand what John was trying to say until he looked over the paperwork himself. When he got down to the section labelled 'Full name of child' he finally understood. "Jacob Angel Sampson," he read out loud. "That's…well, I think that's quite appropriate." He smiled at John and suddenly realised that he'd never shown him Kathy's photo. He fished it out of his wallet and handed it John with a grin. "That's a pair of sleeping angels if ever I saw one."

John studied the picture for a moment and flushed red at Jeff's comment. "I thought you didn't have your camera until this afternoon," he commented. "This was taken yesterday so where did it come from?"

"Kathy," Jeff replied. "She went in to check on you and couldn't resist. It seems like you and Jacob have made quite an impression on everyone in there."

John shook his head. "Well Jacob I can understand but I'm not too sure what they think of me. I've gone in, disrupted their routines and then hassled them into letting me take him down to the garden when I found out that he hadn't been outside since the paramedics first brought him in here."

"John, believe me, everyone...and I mean everyone, will see that as a good thing, not a bad one," Jeff replied, leaning over and resting a hand on John's shoulder. "The fact that you are willing to fight for what's right for your son, so soon after finding out about him, will only help to endear you to them. You just keep on being yourself, John and doing what you feel's right and you won't go far wrong in _anyone's_ eyes."

John lowered his head and handed the photo back to Jeff without meeting his father's eyes. Jeff fiddled around putting the picture back in his wallet to give John a chance to change the subject away from himself.

The moment the wallet was back in Jeff's pocket, John raised his head and pointed at the envelope."Is it safe to assume that most of that is about Rosie's apartment?" he asked. "Is there a time limit involved for when it has to be cleared? I guess that's down to me to put her affairs in…" John stopped and shook his head. "Oh, I…I'll rephrase that…I suppose it's up to me to close down her apartment, her accounts…tie up loose ends, that sort of thing."

"I thought you might have worked out that was coming," Jeff admitted, sadly. "Although because of Jacob it's actually slightly easier than it might have been. There's paperwork to be dealt with in regards to you taking full parental responsibility for Jacob, once that's done and signed then it is apparently relatively simple for you to take control of Rosie's entire estate. I have to say though, that Alex and Joel will both need to be involved before we even contemplate starting down those lines." Alex was Jeff's long-time accountant and had been taking care of Jeff's finances since his moon-walking days. Joel, Tracy Industries' chief lawyer, had been around even longer and had drawn up Jeff's original contract with NASA and also his pre-nuptial agreement before his marriage to Lucille. Both men had become trusted friends over the years and worked closely with one another overseeing both the financial and legal obligations of the entire family.

"I want to do Jacob's paperwork as soon as possible," John replied softly. "I'd feel happier knowing that everything's official and that there's nothing anyone could say or do that would take him from me."

Jeff nodded and patted his knee. "I'll give Joel a call and get him up to speed; he can then fill Alex in on everything." Jeff paused, looked at his watch and took off the fourteen hours to give him the current time in New York. "I'll give it another couple of hours and then I'll ring. Chances are that he'll be on a plane within a couple of hours of me calling so there's no point dragging him out of bed too early."

John rolled his eyes and groaned. 'Uncle Jo' was going to have a field day when he heard the news. He had been ribbing Scott for years about when he was finally going to produce an heir to the Tracy empire. Scott had always fought off the light-heartedly jibes by saying he'd already helped raise four Tracy boys and had no intentions of doing so again. No-one had ever questioned Scott as to whether that meant _ever_ or just not anytime in the foreseeable future but now John began to wonder.

"Father?" he asked worriedly and then waited for Jeff to look back at him before he continued. "Scott will be alright with all this, won't he? With Jacob…and me…I mean, Uncle Jo's always wound him up about being the one to carry on the family line and all that nonsense."

Jeff sighed and then stood up and moved to the side of the sofa where he could look out of the window. He was quiet for a while before turning and sitting back down. "I think," he said quietly. "I think he'll be fine, maybe even better than fine. Jacob's arrival may come as some sort of relief because Scott has always known that even though there was no malice in Jo's teasing there was always a grain of truth behind it. It's a ridiculously outdated idea that assumes that a family line will continue through each firstborn son but it's still an ideal that a lot of people hold true to."

John frowned. "So you're saying that Scott might feel the pressure's been taken off him because an…an heir's already been born?"

Jeff nodded. "Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying. I would have never put any pressure on Scott, or any of you for that matter, to get married just for the sole purpose of continuing the family line. There's no way that would be a healthy basis for a happy marriage and I would never condone it. Scott has his reasons for not wanting to start a family, not least of those being that he is, in his own words, rubbish at combining his job and his women. Bear in mind that you aren't even on the planet for over half of every year I would have though that would have been more your problem than his but apparently I have things backwards."

"I…" John looked down and addressed his knees. "The past year was the only time that I'd been out of contact with Rosie since college. She understood that I'd be out of touch for months at a time during my NASA training and then afterwards during off-world missions. When I left NASA I explained that I had moved to a privately funded firm which ran and maintained satellite-based monitoring equipment. It was the nearest explanation to the truth that I was able to give. The relationship worked like that for years, I…I just don't understand why Rosie ran when she got pregnant. If she had spoken to me we could have changed things, made everything more formal…or official…or whatever..."

Jeff pressed a finger gently against John's chin and lifted his head so he could look him directly in his tear-filled eyes. "You would have married her?" he asked only to be met with a brief nod.

"Damn right I would," John's reply came out with a slight crack in his voice. "I would have married her and then if you would have let me I'd have moved her and the baby onto the island and none of _this_ would have happened."

On the word 'this' John flung his arm out in a gesture that encompassed the whole room. His voice broke and the last word came out as not much more than a squeak as the tears fell from his eyes. Jeff grabbed John's swinging arm on its way back to his lap and used it to pull his son to his feet and into a tight embrace. John tried to fight him for a brief moment but soon realised that Jeff had got hold of him in such a way that he could barely move. All the fight went out of him and he sobbed against his father's shoulder.

Jeff kept a tight hold on John for several minutes. He didn't know that the forerunner to this particular breakdown had played out in front of Jayne a couple of days previously, all he knew was that he'd completely failed in his efforts to keep his son calm. Like Jayne had done before him, Jeff understood that the emotions were better off vented rather than being bottled up inside. For the first time John was allowing himself to grieve for the future, a future that could no longer happen, a future including Mr & Mrs John Tracy, their beautiful son Jacob and his numerous, equally beautiful siblings.


	26. Chapter 26

~#~ (Chapter 26)

John eventually fell quiet but remained in Jeff's arms for a while longer before finally extracting himself and scrubbing at his red-rimmed eyes, muttering 'sorry' over and over again. Jeff put a hand on both his shoulders and gently pressed down until John took the hint and sank back onto the sofa, still muttering apologies as he did so. Jeff sat beside him and captured one of his hands. "John. John listen to me," he gave John's hand a gentle shake to make him focus. "You have nothing to apologise for, do you hear me? Nothing at all. You've always been far too good at bottling your emotions up but in a situation like this, that's just not possible…it's not healthy. If you feel the need to scream, cry or vent then you need to let yourself do those things, no-one will think less of you for it. If you need to run, then do so, just please don't overdo it, the last thing Jacob needs at the moment is for you to land yourself in the hospital."

Jeff knew it was dirty tactics using Jacob's name in such a way but John needed something positive to focus on and Jacob was currently the only good thing to have come out of the whole situation. Jeff knew his words had sunk in when John gasped and sat up. "I…I wouldn't…" he stammered. "How…?"

Jeff shook his head and gave John's hand a squeeze. "You wouldn't run yourself into the ground? No, of course you wouldn't, at least not intentionally. How did I know what you were thinking? Let's just call it a father's intuition and leave it at that. Run, if you wish, just not too far…"

John nodded and pulled his hand from Jeff's. He wiped his eyes with the base of each hand before running his fingers into through his hair, groaning and dropping his head tiredly backwards onto the sofa behind him. He didn't move again until Jeff cleared his throat and addressed him.

"John," he said cautiously. "There's one more thing I have to speak to you about. Something that I thought of this morning and had Spencer investigate for me."

With an obvious effort, John lifted his head from the back of the sofa and looked at Jeff with tired eyes. The breakdown, on top of the wine he'd had earlier, had wiped out the last of his energy and all he felt like doing was falling into bed. "Can't we do the rest tomorrow," he whined pathetically. "I need to sleep."

Jeff reached over and flattened out a tuft of John's hair that was sticking out above his ear. "I know you do," he said sadly. "But it would be much better if we could get this out of the way tonight. I have a feeling tomorrow's going to turn into a day of paperwork and we're both going to need as clear a head as possible. You're not going to be able to concentrate properly if I wait until the morning to tell you this."

A frown formed on John's head. "Whatever is it?" he asked and he reached out to grasp one of Jeff's hands. "Father? Tell me."

Jeff gently explained how he'd realised that nobody had mentioned anything about Rosie having been buried or cremated. He told John about his discussion with Spencer, about how the officer had found out that Rosie's body had been moved to the funeral home and that she had remained there ever since.

John sat motionless on the sofa, looking stunned. Jeff slid closer and wrapped his arms around his son. He gently pulled him down and manoeuvred him until John's head was resting in a comfortable position against his shoulder. He then sat and rubbed John's back, unconsciously rocking him back and forth as he did so.

After sitting like this for a while it became obvious to Jeff that John was fighting to stay awake. He had been emotionally drained before Jeff had dropped the bombshell about Rosie's whereabouts and now it seemed that his body was catching up with his mind. He gave John a gentle shake, "Do you want me to make the arrangements?" John answered with a weak nod and turned his face into Jeff's neck with a sigh. The elder Tracy was unsurprised when, a few seconds later, warm tears began soaking through his shirt. John was too tired to fight any more, too tired even to cry anything other than the silent tears that were pouring out of him.

Jeff remained on the sofa, with John plastered against him, until long after his heartbroken son had fallen asleep. He eventually forced himself to move because he knew he still had calls to make before he could retire for the night. He needed to call Joel to talk him through the situation and he knew that Scott would start to worry if it got much later without him getting in touch.

Jeff cautiously untangled himself from John and lay the sleeping man down on the sofa. He unlaced his son's shoes, slipped them from his feet and then quietly crept through the bathroom to retrieve some bedding. When he returned he covered John with a blanket and was careful not to disturb him as he lifted his head to place a pillow beneath it. Knowing he could do nothing more to ensure John's comfort for the night he slipped back into the other room to make his calls.

~#~

To say that Joel was shocked to hear Jeff's news would have been an understatement. He was dismayed to discover everything that John and Jeff had gone through in the previous few days and as expected, he offered to jump on the next available plane. Jeff recommended that he requisition one of Tracy Industries' private jets along with one of their pilots and Joel agreed. The lawyer promised to call Alex to explain everything before he boarded the jet and told Jeff that he would let him know an estimated arrival time as soon as he knew one. He hinted that he might do a little checking up on Hines & Huberts Solicitors once he was in flight and that he would be in touch with them first thing in the morning so that they would know to expect the Tracys sometime that afternoon.


	27. Chapter 27

~#~ (Chapter 27)

Jeff cut the connection from Joel and tried to make contact via the secure link to Tracy Island. There was a delay before the call was answered and when it was, Jeff was surprised to find himself talking to Grandma instead of Scott.

"Good evening, Mother," he began, only to be cut off when Grandma waved her finger at the view-screen.

"Jefferson Tracy." Jeff winced at his mother's tone. The old woman clearly wasn't happy and judging by the fact that she was using his full name, it was him who she was unhappy with. "Exactly what are you playing at? Kyrano and myself got back with the supplies not half way through the other afternoon to find the island half empty. What did you hope to achieve by upping and taking Johnny away without so much as a by-your-leave? You've sent my poor Alan back up into that wretched tin can again as well and you know it's not healthy for a growing boy to spend so much time in that artificial atmosphere. Jefferson, what is going on and when are you coming home?"

Jeff found himself holding both hands up to the view-screen in an 'I surrender' gesture. "Mother," he tried. "Mother, please. I had good reasons for leaving so suddenly. Scott was supposed to explain everything as soon as you and Kyrano got back to the island. Something important came up and it needed dealing with pretty much immediately…and yes, before you ask, I absolutely needed John with me. Alan will be fine where he is for a while, no-one's expecting him to stay up there forever but he's going to have to stay put for now."

Grandma looked upset but when it appeared as if she was going to open her mouth to argue, Jeff quickly spoke again. "Mother, Joel's coming to see us tomorrow and we'll probably be meeting with lawyers and dealing with things for the rest of the day. I'll fly back over the day after tomorrow and I promise I'll explain everything."

Grandma frowned and then looked off to one side before moving away from the screen. A wet-from-the-shower Virgil flew into view and landed in Jeff's chair. A towel hung round his neck and his pale grey T-shirt sported large damp patches from where it had touched his hair as he'd hastily pulled it over his head. "Hello Father," he said cheerily and then immediately turned and looked in the direction that Grandma had gone. Jeff could hear her saying something just out of view but couldn't work out what it was until Virgil dragged the towel over his head and vigorously scrubbed at his hair. Once he'd done that he draped the towel back around his shoulders and Jeff had to suppress a chuckle when he clearly heard his mother's voice call out 'that's better dear'.

"Is everything OK there Virgil?" he asked.

Virgil bit his lip and then looked around to check on Grandma's whereabouts. Once he was sure she had left the room he looked back at his father. "With any luck things will be better now that you've spoken to Grandma. She didn't take well to Scott telling her you'd left before she got back and then she worked out that that Alan's back on Five because John's with you…" Virgil stopped and winced. "She's convinced that you're going to stunt his growth or something by leaving him up there…it's just about all we've heard for the past forty eight hours."

Jeff rubbed his hand over his brow. "I can well imagine. You boys have got to remember that your grandmother still sees you all as bigger versions of the little children that she helped raise. Also, as each of you have grown up, she's always had a younger one to care for; until Alan that is. He's the youngest so Grandma's going to baby him for as long as she can and I honestly don't think that will change until...until she has a grandchild or two to occupy herself with."

Jeff smiled to himself and then chuckled when Virgil replied with "Well, that's not likely to happen any time soon, is it? Alan's the only one of us with any sort of relationship and he's way too young for that sort of thing. Unless something radical happens, he and Tin-Tin will more than likely be the first…if not the only ones of us to have kids."

Jeff rolled his eyes. 'That's what you think…' he thought, then caught himself and shook his head. "Virg, where's Scott? It's not like him to leave the desk if you aren't there to cover it but I've only seen yourself and Grandma."

Virgil raised himself up on his chair and did another Grandma check before replying. "It's not Scott's fault," he said quietly. "I was just about back here after leaving Two so he went to help Gordon put One to bed. Gordy was having problems getting her in through the pool so he sat her down on Two's landing strip and waited for Scott to go and take over. I tried to come in here but Grandma wouldn't let me in." At Jeff's questioning look he continued, "She said I wasn't allowed in until I'd showered and changed and that if I thought my uniform was ever going to come clean then I had better think again. I just hope she doesn't catch Gordon, he was in a worse state than me when we left India."

"Ah," Jeff nodded. "That explains a lot. So what were you and Gordon doing to get yourselves so dirty?"

"We went to help out with a mudslide in southern India, Father," Virgil replied. "A huge farming plantation near the Dhauladhar mountain range got buried when the top layer of land above it slipped. Brains looked into it and found that the weather has been unusually warm in the area for the past two months. He reckons that the warm weather must have caused a great deal of snow-melt up in the mountains and the land simply couldn't handle the volume of water because of all the logging that took place there in the past. If the range had still been covered in big, sturdy trees then the slip would never have happened and those farmers would still have their livelihoods."

"If we'd known then, what we know now…Ooh, that's a bit heavy for this time of night, Virg." Jeff shrugged, "So, did you get most of the people out?"

Virgil chuckled. "We did better than that, we got everyone out along with half a dozen goats, three dogs and a cow. Apparently a couple of kids were playing on the far side of the plantation and saw a mass exodus of birds from up on the mountain. They saw it as a warning from their deity that something was going to happen and thankfully the adults believed them. Everyone piled into a couple of caves at the base of one of the mountains but no-one from the nearby village realised that and assumed that they had all been either swept away or buried. It was only once Gordon arrived and scanned the area with One that we found out that everyone was pretty much safe but just needed help getting out of the cave and back home. One girl has a broken leg from where she fell in the rush to get into the cave and we suspect one of the teenage boys has a couple of broken ribs from being crushed against the rocks while trying to keep the cow calm. Oh yeah and Dad, the last man we got out had a concussion following a collision with the cave roof…he said that he hadn't been in there since he was a boy and claimed that the roof must have been higher then than it was now."

Jeff chuckled, it was great to see Virgil in such high spirits after a rescue. So many of them ended up with a loss of life that the successful ones tended to be highly celebrated by the whole family.

Virgil suddenly looked up and smirked. "Oh, for Christ's sake, don't let Grandma catch you," he hissed. Jeff assumed it was Gordon who had entered the room but was proved wrong when, just a couple of seconds later, Scott appeared in view. He snatched the towel from around Virgil's shoulders and wiped his hands before running the towel down the back of his arms and legs. When he gave up trying to get himself clean he turned to the view-screen with a "Hello, Father."

"Hello there son," Jeff smiled at Scott's efforts to rid himself of the mud that he'd obviously sat in. "Can I assume by the state of your clothing, that the cockpit of Thunderbird 1 is somewhat less than pristine at the moment?"

Virgil unsuccessfully tried to stop the peal of laughter that escaped from him. Scott glared, "You're laughing now but you've still got that big fat bird of yours to clean. Gordon may have messed mine up but he's damn well going to return it to me in the same state that he borrowed it."

Virgil made no attempt to stop his laughter this time. "Less of the 'big fat' if you don't mind but I'll have you know that my bird is fine. All I need to do is clean the floor." He paused for a moment, "You never heard of seat covers, bro?"

Scott pulled vaguely at the dirty material on his arms and then realised that he had, in fact, been sitting on a very muddy seat cover when he'd put Thunderbird 1 back under the pool. If either he or Gordon had removed it then Scott would have stayed clean and he began to wonder whether Gordon had even needed his help in the first place. It didn't take long for Scott to come to the conclusion that he'd been well and truly had. "I'm going to kill him," he announced. "That little red-headed toe-rag is going to die the minute he finishes cleaning out my bird."

"Scott," Jeff cautioned, trying very hard to keep a straight face. It wasn't often that Gordon managed to get one over on Scott but today had clearly been one of those rare occasions. "Leave him be."

Scott shrugged. "You know I will," he replied. "So, how are you and John getting on, Father? Are you likely to be back any time soon?"

Jeff nodded. "We're doing OK. I've told your grandmother that I'll be back the day after tomorrow. Your Uncle Jo will get here so he can stay with John. Could you tell Grandma I'll aim to be there for lunch? I'll tell you everything that's been going on when I get back…oh, and boys? Well done today."

Scott smiled and clapped Virgil on the back. The younger man dropped his gaze to the tabletop and mumbled something that Jeff couldn't catch. Jeff watched as Scott made to throw an arm around his brother's shoulders to draw him in for a hug only to have Virgil pull away with a squeal and a laugh when he realised just how dirty Scott's arm was about to make him.

Scott caught Virgil's hand as he made to run away. "It's rude not to say goodbye," he chided, winking to where Jeff was watching their antics.

"Goodbye, Father. See you when you get back," Virgil managed to wrench his hand out of Scott's grasp just as he finished speaking. He then quickly disappeared from view and Jeff could hear his hurried footsteps as he ran across the floor.

Scott squatted on the floor in front of the view-screen. "Is everything really OK, Father?" he asked, with concern in his voice. "You're not just saying that for Virg's benefit? If Uncle Jo's involved…"

Jeff shook his head. "No Scott, honestly we're fine and you'll all know everything I do just as soon as I get back. I'll call you as usual tomorrow night, now go and catch your brother."

Jeff smiled to himself when Scott gave a crisp salute and closed the connection. The three island-based boys seemed fine even if Grandma wasn't altogether happy. Jeff hoped she'd be happy enough once she heard all about Jacob and he started to look forward to seeing everyone's reactions to the news.


	28. Chapter 28

~#~ (Chapter 28)

The next morning literally started with a bump. John, who had remained virtually motionless through the entire night, woke with a raging headache and a desperate, burning thirst. He rolled over in preparation for swinging his legs over the side of his bed only to find himself freefalling onto the floor before he could do anything about it. He sat up, looking around in confusion and soon became aware of Jeff's deep, even breaths from the bed on the opposite side of the room.

John untangled himself from the blanket which had followed him onto the floor and quietly clambered to his feet. He folded the blanket up, placed both it and the pillow neatly in the middle of the sofa and then padded over to check that he hadn't disturbed his father.

Finding that Jeff was still fast asleep, John picked up his shoes and silently made his way through the bathroom into his own room. He remembered shedding copious amounts of tears the previous night which he thought probably accounted for his headache so he grabbed a bottle of water from the mini-bar and sat on his bed slowly sipping it. He thought back over the conversation of the night before and was mortified when he realised that he must have fallen asleep, being rocked in his father's arms. As far as John could remember that was something that had never happened before, even when he was little. John clearly remembered his mother rocking him to sleep in the past and there had been several occasions since she'd died that he, Scott and occasionally Virgil, had fallen asleep tangled together for comfort but he just couldn't remember ever falling asleep wrapped around Jeff.

John went to take another sip of his water only to find to his surprise that there was none left. He had been lost in his thoughts for over twenty minutes and had emptied the bottle without noticing. He reached over and dropped it into the bin beside the bed and then stripped off the clothes he was still wearing from the previous day, wrapped a towel around his waist and wandered into the bathroom.

~#~

John heard the shower start up less than five minutes after he had left the bathroom. Jeff emerged a short time later saying that he'd received a message telling him that Joel's plane would be landing at approximately 11.00am that morning.

They had a quick breakfast and then made their way to the hospital. The plan was for John to remain there with Jacob while Jeff met Joel at the airport. From there they would take Joel's belongings to the hotel room that Jeff had reserved that morning and then John would meet them for lunch.

Everything went to plan up until the point where John tried to leave the hospital and found that he didn't have any transportation. He didn't have any currency on him so couldn't catch a cab and he made a flustered phone call which resulted in a slightly shame-faced Jeff turning up to collect him ten minutes later.

They eventually met up with Joel at the cosy Italian restaurant where Jeff had left him and the lawyer approached the pair as they entered. He quietly ushered them over to their reserved table and assured John that he would do everything in his power to keep the afternoon's proceedings as straightforward and pain free as possible for the young man. The three had a pleasant meal, followed by coffee and then returned to the hotel to freshen up before their visit to Hines & Huberts.

~#~

Hines & Huberts turned out to be a small, family run firm which overlooked the waterfront at Franklin Wharf. Immediately upon their arrival Jeff, John and Joel were escorted into a bright, airy, third floor office where Malcolm Hines was waiting for them.

Mr Hines was sympathetic towards everything that John had gone through since receiving the letter and told them that he was sorry to have been the bearer of such disturbing news. He said he had been pleased when he heard that John had turned out to be Jacob's father because, at the time the letter had been produced, the baby's parentage had been uncertain. He had been even more pleased when he heard from Joel earlier that morning that John would be taking full parental responsibility for Jacob. He admitted to having been a little wary of Joel wanting to so thoroughly investigate Rosie's estate before allowing John anywhere near any paperwork relating to it but, once he found out who John's father was, he had understood the need for an outside accountant.

The four men spent several hours going through the various pieces of paperwork and working out exactly what needed doing when and by whom. John was initially upset when he found out that Jeff was flying home the next day but once he stopped and thought about it he found he was relieved. He wasn't going to have to leave Jacob behind so he could fly back to face everyone on the island because Jeff was going to do it for him. By the time that John got home everyone would know about his son and would have been fully briefed on everything that had happened while he'd been away.

Jeff hinted that he would be gone for a couple of days so Joel promised to remain with John until he got back. This meant that the lawyer would be accompanying John to the next morning's appointment with the registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages instead of his father. Alterations to birth records were possible while the child was less than twelve months of age so at the same time as sorting out the issue of John being 'deceased' on Jacob's birth certificate, they would be changing his surname to Tracy. John thought it was fitting not to lose the 'Sampson' completely so had decided to keep it as a middle name. Once Jacob Angel Sampson Tracy had a full and correct birth certificate John would apply for a passport for him and this would be fast-tracked to make it possible for him to take Jacob home sooner.

By the time they left Hines & Huberts, Jacob was legally, as well as genetically, John's son but nothing had been decided about Rosie's estate. Joel had details of all her accounts ready to pass on to Alex, who had been told to expect a call somewhere around 0700 NY time.


	29. Chapter 29

~#~ (Chapter 29)

After dinner, Jeff left Joel and John in the hotel restaurant and headed up for an early night. He had told the airport that he would be leaving in the early hours of the next morning and wanted to make sure he'd slept properly before flying himself back to the island.

When his alarm went off Jeff rose, washed and dressed as quietly as possible. Once he had finished he slipped through the door into John's room and using the light from the bathroom to see, took the photos from the bedside table. It was still well out of hours but the night porter allowed him use of the hotel's conference facilities to scan the pictures and Jeff added them to the disc that Kathy had given him a couple of days previously.

Jeff returned the pictures to John's bedside table and then gently sat on the bed beside his son. He was torn between leaving John to sleep and waking him to say he was going but eventually decided that John would rather have the chance to say goodbye. He got off the bed, squatted down beside it and brushed his hand through John's blonde hair. "Wakey wakey," he whispered and was instantly rewarded with a fluttering of eyelids and then a flash of clear blue eyes. He had forgotten that John was used to being woken up at random hours by the alarms and radio messages up on Thunderbird Five and because of that John's mind tended to snap straight into gear after waking.

John looked like he was going to sit up so Jeff pressed a gentle hand against his shoulder. "Stay there," he said quietly. "I just wanted to let you know that I'm going."

John nodded. "You'll be OK going back on your own?" he asked.

Jeff chuckled. "Why? Because Sleeping Beauty was such a helpful co-pilot on the way here?" he teased. "I'll be fine."

It took John a couple of moments to work out that he had been the Sleeping Beauty in question because he had slept virtually the whole way between the island and Hobart. "Well, just…just fly carefully."

"I will," Jeff nodded and pulled himself to his feet. "…and I'll let you know as soon as I land. For now, you just go back to sleep."

As Jeff turned towards the door John reached out and grabbed his arm. "Dad," he said quietly. "Thank you. Thank you for being here…for coming with me. Thank you…just…thank you for everything."

Jeff turned back and gave John a one armed hug which turned out to be a little awkward due to the fact that the younger of the two men was still lying down in bed. "You're welcome," he said. "…and John, I know Joel is going to be with you but if you need me over the next few days, any time, day or night, just pick up the phone."

He patted John on the shoulder and waited while he got comfortable. Once he was settled, Jeff leaned over, kissed him gently on the forehead and then walked from the room.

~#~

Jeff had an uneventful flight back and made contact as he approached the island. "Tracy One to base, are you receiving me Scott?"

"Loud and clear, Father," came Scott's cheery reply. "I have you on the radar. It's just as well you're not a little nearer because Gordon's just about to bring in Thunderbird 1. He's been to drop Brains off with Lady Penelope because Parker's got some sort of problem with FAB 1."

Gordon, having been quietly eavesdropping on the conversation, took this moment to interrupt. "I think Lady Penelope is going to be having a quiet afternoon," he commented. "Parker was just itching for me and Penelope to finish our tea so he could go out and help Brains dismantle the car. By the time I left they were both up to the elbows in bits of engine."

Jeff chuckled. "I'll bet," he replied. "So how are you getting on with your new charge, Gordon? Are you treating her as well as Scott would expect?"

"You bet I am," Gordon replied. "It's a little strange leaving my little Four behind all the time but I have to admit that One's speed makes a nice change and her controls are super-responsive."

"Well, that's good to hear." Jeff could hear the whine of Thunderbird One's engines in the background as Gordon spoke. "Gordon, exactly where are you at the moment? Scott said you were just about back?"

"I'm directly above the house, Father," Gordon replied. "Why?"

Scott and Jeff both rolled their eyes at Gordon's reply. 'Directly above the house' in Gordon-speak could mean anything from 'I'm so close that I'm going to scrape the roof' to 'Well, I can't see it but I know there's an island down there somewhere'.

"Scott, how are things looking out there for escort duty?" Jeff was pretty sure that his eldest son would pick up on what he was asking and sure enough the answer came back almost instantly.

"Except for you and Gordon there's nothing around for miles," Scott replied. "There's one cargo plane heading north about 400 miles to the east of here but other than that there's clear skies all round."

"Thanks, son." Jeff chuckled then adjusted the steering to put the plane on a slightly better course towards the island. "Come on then Gordon, let's see just what you can do with that bird. Your old man's tired and in need of an escort home."

"Really?" Gordon's reply came with a mixture of glee and disbelief. Scott would never have let him take Thunderbird One out again without good reason and the he couldn't possibly think that showing off to their father was really a valid use for the multi-million dollar rocket-plane. Gordon paused for a moment, thinking back over his previous thoughts. Yes, Thunderbird 1 was a multi-million dollar piece of highly sophisticated machinery but after all said and done, Jeff had paid for her. If Jeff wanted Thunderbird 1 to escort him home then that's damn well what Thunderbird 1 was going to do.

"Gordon," Scott's voice broke through his thoughts. "Are you going or not?"

As soon as Scott finished speaking there was a roar and the whole house shook. Scott couldn't help but roll his eyes again. 'Really close above the house then', he thought and then laughed out loud as Gordon's joyful whooping resonated through the speakers as he flipped Thunderbird 1 into vertical mode and shot straight up away from the house until it disappeared from view.

~#~

All too soon the blip on Jeff's scanner that showed other aircraft in the vicinity began picking up an object hurtling towards him at breakneck speed. A fleeting thought crossed Jeff's mind that it had possibly been unwise to unleash Gordon on the unsuspecting public in Thunderbird 1 but when the plane's scanner went completely crazy and registered an imminent collision that never happened he began to relax. He could hear the Thunderbirds thrusters over the sound of his own engine so he knew Gordon was close but try as he might he couldn't pinpoint exactly where the red-headed aquanaut was. "Gordon," he asked cautiously. "Where are you?"

Gordon chuckled through the radio and the bright red nose-cone of Thunderbird 1 appeared from beneath the window off to Jeff's left hand side. The rest of the Thunderbird soon followed then flipped neatly over on its axis and disappeared vertically downwards on the other side of Tracy One.

"Ah, now I see you," Jeff laughed and jumped slightly when Thunderbird 1 reappeared and Gordon repeated the manoeuvre before haring off into the distance at high speed. Jeff assumed that Gordon had made his point about the manoeuvrability of Thunderbird 1 and then decided that Tracy One was too slow to escort so had gone home again. As he flew Jeff looked at the scanner again and realised that Gordon hadn't actually gone all the way home. Thunderbird 1 came back into view a couple of minutes later and Jeff could see her doing lazy circles in the sky. The Tracy patriarch thought this was an odd thing for Gordon to be doing until he realised that the rocket-plane was actually flying upside-down.

Gordon realised that he'd been spotted and flipped the craft right-side up before climbing vertically and spinning the ship around as if it was drilling its way through the air. The manoeuvre itself was carried out faultlessly and the effect was one of graceful beauty. Gordon pulled out of the climb and followed Jeff's course, sticking as close to the plane as he dared. This meant that Jeff could actually see his son as he piloted the Thunderbird and as he watched the young man sent a salute his way.

Jeff returned the salute and picked up the two-way radio transmitter. "You look quite at home in there," he commented. "And you fly like Scott…like the bird's an extension of yourself." Gordon replied with an acknowledging nod and a quiet 'Thanks' before grinning and suggesting an island fly-by prior to final landing.

Surprisingly Jeff agreed so both Thunderbird 1 and Tracy One shot across the water travelling almost wingtip to wingtip. They lost height as they approached and overshot the island before peeling away from one another and landing their machines in their respective hangars.


	30. Chapter 30

~#~ (Chapter 30)

Jeff knew that Scott would go and check Thunderbird 1 over as soon as Gordon landed so he wasn't surprised to find only Virgil waiting for him in the hangar. He gave his middle son a cheery wave from the door of Tracy One and threw a bag down for him to carry. The pair of them wandered to the laundry room, dumped one the bags in front of the machine and then continued up into the house.

Virgil dropped onto the sofa and watched as Jeff fiddled around at his desk, loaded a disc into his computer, plugged in his camera and then sat down with a sigh.

"You look tired, Father," he commented. "Is everything alright? Is John OK? And how about Uncle Jo?"

Jeff smiled and looked at his watch. "Well done Virg," he said with a chuckle. "I had prepared myself for the questions to start the minute I got off the plane but you held off far longer than Scott, Alan or Gordon would have done. John's fine and so is your Uncle Jo. I admit it's been a long couple of days but for the moment there's nothing that a pot of good, strong coffee and a slice of Grandma's pie won't fix."

Virgil took the very unsubtle hint and got up to track down coffee and pie. Jeff pounced on the computer and immediately started cueing up the photos that he wanted to show the boys while he explained what was going on in Tasmania. When he was done he sent a message to John telling him that he had arrived safely and reminding him that he could make contact whenever he felt the need.

Scott and Gordon wandered into the room just as Jeff finished sending the message. Scott looked relaxed as he listened attentively to Gordon who was talking nineteen to the dozen and waving his hands around excitedly. Jeff smiled and quickly switched off his screen before moving around the desk to meet the arriving boys.

"Aw, Dad, that was great," Gordon gushed and ran into his arms for a hug. Even as a tiny child, Gordon had always been a cuddler and once he'd been able to walk he hadn't been particularly worried which adult he latched on to just as long as they were happy to pick him up and cuddle him.

"You know, I kind of got the impression that you were enjoying yourself out there," Jeff replied, returning the hug with a smile. "Did Brains give either of you any sort of indication as to how long he'd need to fix FAB 1?"

"He didn't say, Father," Gordon replied as he backed out of Jeff's embrace and stood back beside Scott. "Lady Penelope seemed to be expecting him to stay at least a couple of days though. She was saying something about a technological science display that's opening in Cambridge that she was certain Brains would want to see."

Jeff sighed and frowned. "Oh. I see. Well, that's going to make things a little awkward but seeing as he's already there I guess it can't be helped. I need to call a family meeting as soon as possible to explain everything that's happened in the last few days. I wanted to get the four of you and your grandmother together so we could sit down and discuss…well, everything but as there's no-one available to replace Alan, I guess he's going to have to attend remotely."

Virgil walked back into the room with a plate containing a large triangular piece of pie and a fork. He was followed by Kyrano who carried a tray containing a carafe of coffee, sugar, milk and four cups.

Kyrano bowed slightly as he put the tray down on Jeff's desk. "Mr Tracy, it is good to see that you have returned safely," he said. "I trust that yourself and Master John are both well."

"Thank you, Kyrano, both John and I are in good health." Jeff smiled as he watched Virgil one-handedly clear a spot on the desk so he could put the plate down. "Kyrano, you wouldn't happen to know the whereabouts of my mother at the moment, would you? I need to speak to her rather urgently."

"Mrs Tracy can be found within the walls of the vegetable garden," Kyrano replied, in his usual quiet, respectful manner. "I am a little worried because she has been there for several hours and has been refusing to come back inside. Did you wish to speak to her before the midday meal?"

Jeff looked at his watch, grimaced and then felt guilty for sending Virgil out for pie when he had clearly told everyone to expect him for lunch. "I suppose not," he said with a sigh and then came to a decision. "OK, this is what's going to happen…I'll go and retrieve Mother while you boys stay here and drink your coffee. I'll join you once your grandmother is settled and we can have a little chat before lunch. Assuming no rescues come in while we're eating we're going to come back in here afterwards for a family meeting. That's all of us…your grandmother, you three, myself and Alan via the vid-link. Kyrano, if we could have a little privacy this afternoon it would be greatly appreciated."

Kyrano nodded. "I understand, Mr Tracy. I shall inform my wife and daughter and ensure you are not disturbed. I will go now to assist with the preparations for the meal." Kyrano slid silently from the room while Jeff stood up and motioned to the coffee and the pie. "You boys sort yourselves out; I'm going to see to Grandma."

~#~

Jeff strode down the steps leading away from the back of the house. Not long after Grandma moved onto the island it had become obvious to Jeff that his ever-active mother was struggling away from her long-time homestead in Kansas. After a lengthy discussion with Kyrano and Brains, he had arranged for a small section of forest to be cleared and a walled garden to be built inside the man-made clearing. This would mean that any delicate plants were protected from the sea winds, spray and the worst of the weather by both the surrounding forest as well as the garden's high, brick walls. It also meant that the garden was quiet and peaceful and this in turn meant that whoever was tending the garden at any point in time could enjoy some much-needed solitude. Jeff had presented the garden to a delighted Mrs Tracy and the old woman spent many pleasant hours within its walls from then on.

Jeff winced as he pushed open the door in the wall of the garden. Mrs Tracy had clearly taken out her frustrations of the past few days on the strip of soil that ran along one side of the path near the door. Jeff remembered that this particular strip of soil had, up until recently, held big, healthy squash plants containing a prolific amount of fruit. Now however the soil was bare and showed signs of recent disturbance. Jeff followed the line of soil with his eyes and his gaze eventually fell on his mother who had her back to him. She was brutally attacking another patch of soil with a hoe and Jeff could hear her muttering to herself as she worked. The old woman was completely unaware of her son's entrance to the garden so, careful that he didn't startle her, he skirted around, close to the outside wall of the garden, until he could approach her head on.

"Mother," he said quietly. "Mother, please stop and come inside. Lunch is almost ready."

Mrs Tracy dropped her hoe with a loud exclamation of "Oh!" and stood up to full height, staring at him. "Jeff. When did you get back? Is Johnny with you?"

"Hello Mother," Jeff took hold of the old lady's hand and started guiding her down the path towards the door. "I haven't been back long, just long enough to say hello to the boys and to come and find you. John's not with me. He's with Joel, back in Tasmania, do you remember I told you the other day that Joel would be there to look after him while I came back here?"

Grandma Tracy nodded vaguely. "Of course I remember," she said, unconvincingly. "It's just…if you haven't brought Johnny back then who's going to relieve Alan?"

"Mother," Jeff replied, with exasperation. "Alan is fine. He doesn't need relieving when he's been up there for less than a week and seeing as how Brains has now gone to Lady Penelope's it wouldn't really be feasible to bring him down anyway. Scott has to man Command and Control when I'm not here and Virgil is by far the most flexible where Thunderbird 2 and its pod machines are concerned. Gordon, quite apart from the fact that he's currently flying Thunderbird 1 on every mission at the moment, is a disaster waiting to happen up on his own on Five. No, those three have to stay here and keep things running until I am back here full-time. Until either that happens, or we can spare Brains for a while, Alan is staying where he is. OK?"

Mrs Tracy opened her mouth to argue and then thought better of it when she looked around and found that Jeff had skilfully steered her out of the garden and half way back up the steps to the house without her even noticing. Jeff continued to walk until he got to her suite of rooms and pushed the door open for her. "Here we are. Don't spend too long getting cleaned up though, lunch is almost ready."


	31. Chapter 31

~#~ (Chapter 31)

Lunch ended up having something of a party atmosphere after Tin-Tin collected Grandma from her room and joined Jeff and the others for the meal. The three boys took their cues from their father who, even though he had no problems with being away, was glad to be home and soon relaxed back into his usual environment. Scott saw this and was more than happy to relinquish control of everything back to Jeff before attacking his food with gusto. Gordon was still on a high from his trip out with Jeff and Virgil was just happy and relaxed because everyone else was.

Once the meal was finished Tin-Tin helped Kyrano clear the table so that Jeff, Grandma and the boys could move into the sitting room.

Grandma sat in her usual chair which Jeff had pulled closer to his desk, Gordon unceremoniously dumped himself on one of the comfy chairs near to the portrait wall and Virgil sat on one of the sofas. Scott swung himself over the back of the sofa beside Virgil and sat with his arm outstretched behind his middle brother. Jeff closed the sliding doors to shut the world outside, pulled the blinds down a little way and sat down on the edge of his desk where he could speak to the family without the desk acting as a barrier between them. He dragged the keyboard over to where he could reach it and stretched across to press the button which would contact Alan. "Tracy Island to Thunderbird 5, come in Alan."

Alan's portrait immediately switched from picture to video mode and Alan's cheery face appeared on the screen. "Hello Father," he said and then looked past Jeff and added "Hi guys, hi Grandma. Is everything alright down there?"

Gordon let out a peal of laughter at the look that Jeff and Scott's gave one another after they both replied to Alan. Even though he'd handed over to Jeff, Scott was still in 'in charge' mode. Switching off after being in control for a couple of days wasn't as easy as it sounded and the eldest Tracy son held both hands towards his father in way of apology. Jeff nodded and turned to Alan. "Everything's fine, Alan," he said. "Sorry, I know I've just called you but could you now wait a moment?"

Alan looked a little bewildered at being called before he was needed but figured that Jeff knew what he was doing and shrugged. "No problem, Father, I'll be right here."

"Before we start, I just want to make sure that everyone's coming into this with the same information. I know what John's told you three," Jeff waved a hand over the area where Scott, Virgil and Gordon were sitting "…but I'm not sure exactly what you've passed on. Mother, how much do you know about where I've been for the past few days and why John and I have been away?"

Mrs Tracy studied her son. "I know that you and Johnny have been in Tasmania because a girl that John knew in college has passed away. Apparently someone was needed to sort out her effects but what I don't understand is why Johnny was chosen to do that. Why aren't the girl's parents there arranging everything?"

"All in good time, Mother," Jeff said, holding up his hand. "I'll get onto that shortly. I just wanted to check that you knew the same as the boys. Alan? Did that agree with what you know?"

Alan nodded. "Yes, Father. Apart from the fact that we apparently met the girl in question at John's graduation. I don't really remember 'cos we met an awful lot of people that day."

"I remember her," Gordon called out softly. "She was a sweet little thing, only came up to John's shoulders."

"That's sounds about right." Jeff nodded and leaned over to press a button on his keyboard. A screen flipped out of the wall behind the desk and a professionally-shot head and shoulders photo of Rosie came up on it. Alan disappeared from his picture for a moment as he looked at a duplicate screen to the one in the house that had sprung to life beside him. Once he returned, Jeff turned back to face the others. "That is Rosie," he announced. "John had apparently kept in touch with her right through from college until a little over a year ago."

"Oh, I recognise her," Virgil commented. "John said she died in a car wreck?"

Jeff nodded sadly. "Unfortunately that's true. About three weeks ago Rosie was heading home and a drunk driver jumped a red light and hit the driver's side of her car. Rosie was killed instantly and the drunk died shortly afterwards. Now, I can't really answer your question, Mother, because I don't know the details of Rosie's family life but when the police entered her apartment after she died they were unable to immediately trace any relatives. The only up to date contact in her address book turned out to be John's so the police handed his details over to a firm of solicitors and the result was a letter which I think you boys all know about."

Scott, Virgil, Alan and Gordon all nodded. As soon as Jeff had taken John from the island, Scott had pulled Virgil and Gordon into the house and contacted Alan via vid-link. The four of them had a long discussion about what was happening and by the time they finished, none of them knew anything that the others didn't.

"As well as telling John about Rosie's death and supplying contact details etc, the letter also contained photographs." Jeff paused and looked at the screen behind him. "…that being one of them…and this," Jeff tapped his keyboard again and an informal, relaxed picture of Rosie against a backdrop of trees, replaced the previous one on the screen. "…being another. There was other information in the letter and more photos as well and I'm afraid that's what threw first me, and then John, for a complete loop. You see, Rosie wasn't alone in the car when the accident happened. She was travelling with a child, her son, Jacob Angel Sampson…Tracy."

During his flight from Tasmania, Jeff had thought long and hard about just how he was going to break the news about Jacob to the rest of the family and had come to the conclusion that a little white lie about his name seemed the kindest way. It would be up to John in the long run whether to tell his brothers that Jacob hadn't always had the surname of Tracy but it would be his name as soon as the paperwork was completed so it only seemed right to start using it.


	32. Chapter 32

~#~ (Chapter 32)

A stunned silence fell over the room for a couple of seconds before everyone started talking at once. Scott leapt to his feet but then thought better of it and dropped back onto the sofa next to Virgil. Gordon commented that 'it's always the quiet ones' and Mrs Tracy let out an exclamation of "Oh" followed by a pause and then "I'm sorry Jeff but exactly what are you telling us?"

Virgil went to pull himself up to go and sit with the old woman but Jeff waved him back down. He moved across the room, squatted beside his mother and held her hand. "Mother, I'm saying that Johnny has a son…that he's the father of a little boy named Jacob." Jeff looked over from his spot beside Mrs Tracy. "Scott, can you press the button for the next picture. Oh and get Alan back while you're at it, please."

All three boys looked over to where Alan's face had been and found that his video screen had been reset to picture mode. Scott wandered around the desk to call him back but the eyes on his portrait started to flash before Scott got to the button.

Alan looked very sheepish when the live feed replaced his portrait. "Sorry," he said. "I cut myself off. Dad, you do mean what I think you mean, don't you? That Jacob is John's baby? That's...that's huge."

Jeff chuckled. "'Huge' was John's word for it too. Scott, press the button."

Scott was still around the wrong side of the desk so leaned across, flicked the keyboard and sat down in Jeff's chair. A strangled squeak came from both Virgil and Grandma as soon as the new picture was revealed and Scott, realising that he'd left Virgil alone on the sofa, launched himself back across the room towards his brother. "Oh my God," he breathed, as he finally got a proper look at the picture. "…it's Alan."

Alan let out an indignant "Hey" and then disappeared from view so he could study the picture.

Jeff snorted. "You boys like to think that you're all so different from one another but sometimes it's scary to realise just how alike you really are."

Scott tore his gaze away from the screen and looked at Jeff with a frown. "Whatever do you mean, Father?" he asked.

Jeff chuckled again. "I mean," he said. "That Alan's first thought when he heard about the baby was 'Wow, that's huge.' That was the same expression John used when he first found out that Jacob was definitely his. Scott, you took one look at Jacob and thought 'That's Alan.' I'll give you one guess what the first thing John said when he saw Jacob for the first time…"

"That he looked just like Alan?" Gordon answered with a grin. "Well, that's 'cos he does. I don't really remember Alan that small but I've seen pictures and that's what he looked like."

Jeff shook his head. "I'll tell you one thing," he said quietly. "Alan was a damn sight smaller at six months of age than Jacob is. We'll get the photos out later because even Scott's too young to really remember John as a baby but I promise you this; Jacob's the absolute spitting image of his daddy." There was a small pause before Jeff spoke again. "You have to remember that because of Alan's issues when he was tiny and because he was the last baby we had in the family, he's the one you all remember most."

"Have you all forgotten that I can hear you?" Alan put just enough whine in his voice to make everyone look over. "This isn't about me it's about John and Jacob and…aw, man, I'm gonna be stuck up here forever."

Virgil and Gordon caught each other's eyes and burst out laughing. Scott watched them in confusion and then replayed Alan's last comment in his head. "I thought this wasn't about you," he chuckled. "But that is a very good point. John's not going to be able to spend weeks or months at a time up on Five any more. Dad?"

Jeff shook his head. "I haven't even begun to think that far in advance. Alan, I was going to swap you with Brains so you could be down here with us today but with Brains already in England that obviously couldn't happen. I'm going to have to fly back out to John in a day or two but when I get back here properly we'll work out something more permanent. You OK with that for now, Alan?"

Alan nodded. "I'm OK, just…" Alan's voice petered out when he realised that his father might not appreciate what he was going to say.

Jeff patted Grandma's hand before standing up and moving to perch back on the edge of his desk where he'd started the meeting. "Just what, Alan? Out with it, I won't bite."

Alan looked at the floor and fidgeted for a moment before answering. "It's just…if…if you have to put Tin-Tin on rotation then I'm hardly ever going to get to see her. It's hard enough already with John and I sharing the time up here but…"

Jeff held his hand up to stop the sudden rush of words. "Alan, please, don't start fretting unnecessarily. We'll work it all out and make sure it's a fair as possible but I'll say right here and now that you and Tin-Tin won't be sharing rotations and staying up there together." Gordon chuckled and Alan scowled at him so Jeff quickly continued. "I haven't discussed any of this with John yet but I doubt he's going to want to give up Five completely. He won't be able to stay up there for long stretches at a time but to be honest these are all really things need to be discussed later. For now, does anyone have anything they want to say in regards to the more immediate issue of John and Jacob?"


	33. Chapter 33

~#~ (Chapter 33)

Gordon and Virgil tried to speak over the top of each other to which Jeff held up a hand to Virgil and pointed at Gordon.

"Didn't John know about the baby before the letter?" Gordon asked. "How could he not know that he'd got his girl pregnant if they'd been together…you said they'd been together since _college_?"

Jeff nodded. "They've been together in some way since they both attended Harvard. I don't know the full details but apparently Rosie understood why John had to be away a lot during his NASA days and then when he left and joined some unnamed-but-privately-funded firm working with satellite-based monitoring equipment it made sense that he was away a lot again. As to how he didn't know about the pregnancy…well, that's a surprisingly easy one to answer. Firstly, you all remember when John and Scott were out of action for a couple of months? Yes?" There was a round of nods accompanied by a grimace from Scott. "Scott was stuck here and John was…?"

"Not here," Scott finished with an incredulous look on his face. "The sly dog, are you telling me that while I was stuck here John was…"

Jeff held up his hand. "Scott," he said. "Stop. Your grandmother is in the room, please give that some consideration before you take that sentence where I think it's going."

Scott looked from Jeff to Mrs Tracy and back again. Grandma didn't look unduly perturbed by the conversation and Scott even thought he could see an amused twinkle in the old woman's eyes. "I was stuck here and John was…was…um…"

"Spending some quality time with his girlfriend?" Gordon suggested.

Scott snapped his fingers and pointed in Gordon's direction. "Exactly," he said. "OK, so John spent most…if not all of that time with Rosie?"

"Even though he was supposed to be recuperating," Gordon muttered. "I can't help but remember that bit, that's the reason I was stuck up on Five in the first place after all."

"Gordon, that's enough," Jeff reprimanded and then waved a hand out to encompass everyone. "OK, you've worked out for yourselves that Jacob was conceived during John's convalescence. Now I want you to think about what happened after that, specifically once John had gone back up to Five."

"I got sick," Alan answered from his screen. "…and John was left up here for months."

Jeff nodded. "Eleven weeks," he corrected. "John was up there for eleven weeks and at some point during those weeks Rosie literally disappeared from his life. John told me that he tried to contact her as soon as he got back down but found that he couldn't get in touch by any of the usual means. He then flew over to try and see her only to discover that she had moved on without leaving a forwarding address."

"…and Johnny has no clue why?" Mrs Tracy asked, leaning forward in her chair as she listened to her son.

Jeff shook his head. "No clue at all. John told me, before he read the letter, that he hoped Rosie had been swept off her feet by the 'Prince Charming who she had always spoken about'. It seems strange to me that someone who had spent the best part of her life with one man, as far as I can tell, would talk about her 'Prince Charming' in front of that man. I haven't said anything to John but, because of that, I could take an educated guess as to who that Prince Charming was…"

"I'd place money on him being tall and blonde with a chiselled chin and fine, angled cheekbones." Scott's eyes were sad as he spoke. "Aw man, I sure hope John never works that one out." He shook his head. "I still don't get why she left though."

"Me neither," Jeff agreed. "And to be honest it's something that we may never know. Rosie may have been scared or daunted by the prospect of motherhood. She might have thought that she was doing John a favour by not tying him down or maybe she was worried that he would think she was tricking him into a marriage. You never know, she might have even thought that John had guessed about the pregnancy and that he had run when he was out of contact for such a long time."

"How can you say that, Father?" Alan cried from his screen. "You know damn well that John would have never left her if he'd known about the baby."

"Alan," Scott began to reprimand his youngest sibling but was stopped by his father. "It's alright Scott, leave him be." He stood up and stepped up close to Alan's portrait and looked him straight in the eyes. "I had a feeling things would get a little heated at some point. Alan, I was merely running through possible theories as to why Rosie may have decided to up and leave New Zealand. In my heart I know that John would never have left her if he'd had any sort of inkling what was going on. He told me that, had he known, he would have married Rosie and then sought my permission to move her and Jacob over here...I'm not sure that everything about that is in the right order but that was the way John said it."

"Would you have let him?" Alan asked quietly. "Move her to the island, I mean?"

A sad look passed across Jeff's face and he held a hand out to touch the screen where Alan's face was displayed. "I know it's not something that we've ever really discussed but I would hope that, if any of you found yourself in such a relationship, that you could come and talk to me. If I've ever given any of you reason to think that I wouldn't allow you to marry or that, if you did, you couldn't move your wives or life partners onto the island then I apologise profusely. Since the day that your mother died the five of you have been my life and I would _never_ risk losing one of you over something as trivial as domestic arrangements."

"Father, with what we do though…there's no way you'd be able to give your blessing on any marriage or partnership without thoroughly vetting both our partner and their families." Scott's statement was pitched in such a way as to make it a question.

Jeff shook his head and dropped his hand from Alan's face. "International Rescue would certainly make things more…complicated but even with that taken out of the equation any potential spouse would always have had to be checked out; your surname alone would have guaranteed that. The last thing I would want would be for one or more of you to be hurt by someone who wasn't genuine…someone who was only after the Tracy name and all the paraphernalia that goes with it."

Jeff and Mrs Tracy's eyes met across the room as the four boys fell quiet. Despite Jeff's objections, Lucille had been thoroughly vetted by NASA when the pair had first started dating. Several people in power at the space agency had hinted that the daughter of a Kansas cattle farmer could only want a member of their high-profile space program for two things…his money and his fame. Jeff, Lucille and both sets of parents had argued long and hard that the pair had known each other since high school but the powers-that-be wouldn't listen and went on to scrutinise Lucille and her family anyway. Against stringent advice, Jeff had proposed to Lucille and by the time that NASA had admitted defeat and given their approval of the relationship, the first tiny fluttering of Scott's life had already begun. Despite their initial reservations, NASA had their PR department run the news that Jeff would be marrying a good old fashioned farm girl from Kansas. The public latched onto the story of 'farm-boy-turned-astronaut returns home to wed childhood sweetheart' and photographs of the wedding, held in the garden of Lucille's parents' homestead, were published in magazines around the globe. A further furore followed eight months later, when pictures of Jeff, Lucille and Scott, their newborn 'honeymoon baby' graced the tabloids. John's birth the year after had warranted a fair amount of press coverage but Virgil's had less and by the time Gordon arrived the media had moved on to other 'newer' celebrity families.

"You know, now that it's been mentioned, I think that's probably the saddest thing about this whole thing between Rosie and John. The fact that if Rosie really doesn't have any relatives to speak of. She could have probably moved here with very little fuss and no risk of random relatives wanting to interfere or drop in for visits. It appears, on the surface at least, that John had found himself the ideal candidate for an International Rescue wife."

Scott met his father's eye. "And the fact that she disappeared without trying to get anything from John meant that she was definitely not after him for his money so she would have been a successful contender in the post of Tracy wife too," he said softly and shook his head. "Poor John."

Jeff nodded. "My thoughts exactly," he replied. "Now, apart from the fact that we got completely diverted, I think that probably answered your question, Gordon. Yes?" Gordon nodded so Jeff continued, "Virgil, did you want to say something?"


	34. Chapter 34

~#~ (Chapter 34)

Scott dropped his hand from the back of the sofa onto Virgil's shoulder as he nodded. "I...it's…you said the baby…Jacob, was in the car wreck too? Is he OK? Was he hurt?"

A gasp from Gordon's side of the room let everyone know that he was upset that he hadn't thought to ask about the boy. Jeff looked over and gave him a brief smile before turning back to Virgil. "Well, he's certainly better than he could have been. The accident left him with some serious bruising along with a vicious black eye and he has several deep cuts where broken glass from the car's windows caught him…Here, here and here." Jeff paused and pointed to his leg, cheek and forehead. "They're all healing up nicely but that one…" Jeff motioned to his right leg again "...was apparently pretty nasty and is going to leave a scar. He has three broken bones in his left arm so his arm's in a cast and will remain that way for another couple of weeks until everything's finally knitted back together. All in all, I'd have to say that Jacob was lucky…very lucky that his seat was in the back of the car on the passenger side. The crash happened on the driver's side and we've been told that if he'd been strapped in behind the driver then he would have almost certainly died at the same time as his mother."

The room fell quiet again until, surprisingly, Virgil finally broke the silence. "Would anyone have bothered to track John down if Jacob hadn't made it? If not then John would have lost his son without ever knowing it."

Scott gently pulled Virgil towards him and locked eyes with Jeff who gently shook his head. "I couldn't say for certain but no, I don't think John would have been contacted if Jacob hadn't survived. The authorities would have had no pressing reason to try and contact anyone and I'm pretty sure that they would have just cleared Rosie's apartment and logged the whole thing down as a sad and tragic accident." What Jeff didn't say was that to create a death certificate for Jacob, the registrars would have first had to gain a copy of his birth certificate. Once they had seen that the boy's father was listed as deceased they wouldn't have tried to contact John through the entries in Rosie's address book. Finding no relatives of any description there would have been no choice but to close down the apartment and give both Rosie and Jacob what Jeff had called a modern-day pauper's funeral.

Jeff watched the others as his words sunk in. Virgil remained tight against Scott's side as the pair comforted one another, Grandma and Alan looked thoughtful and Gordon...Jeff thought Gordon looked twitchy. "You doing OK over there, Gordon?" he asked quietly.

Gordon shrugged. "Don't know," he said quietly. "I think I'd want to know…if it were me, I mean…I think I'd want the chance to say goodbye even if I had never met the baby but…if I never knew about him or her in the first place then that in itself would save me a whole load of hurt. I don't know what would be best…or worse…or whatever."

Jeff wandered slowly over to Gordon and squatted in front of him, resting a hand on Gordon's knee and squeezing gently. "Hey, hey, it's OK. It didn't happen. Jacob made it…he survived and he's going to be fine."

A single tear trickled down Gordon's face and he leaned forwards until his forehead was resting on Jeff's shoulder. He pushed forwards until he was half on and half off the chair between Jeff's legs and wrapped his arms around his father's waist. It was almost unheard of for the family to see Gordon shed tears because he didn't cry easily and usually used humour instead of showing that he was upset. In this situation though, shut up inside the room, there was absolutely no space for joviality and Gordon's emotions had finally overflowed. Jeff, who was still squatting on the balls of his feet, adjusted his balance and wrapped his arms around his red-headed son so he could stroke his back. He was vaguely aware of the sliding doors being opened and then closed again but ignored the sound as he concentrated on his son.

Gordon eventually pulled away and scrubbed at his eyes with the base of his hand. He scooted back on the chair and jumped when the doors opened again. Using Gordon's knees for leverage Jeff hauled himself to his feet and flexed his knees slightly when they objected to being left in such an uncomfortable crouched position for too long.

Mrs Tracy bustled back into the room, closely followed by Kyrano who was carrying a tray containing coffee, cups, milk and sugar.

"Coffee? Mother, you are a lifesaver," he said. "And you too, Kyrano."

Kyrano nodded silently as he put the tray down in the centre of Jeff's desk. Jeff couldn't help but notice his Malaysian friend's questioning glance towards the screen which was still displaying the photo of Jacob that everyone agreed looked so much like Alan. Jeff moved and put a hand on his arm. "Kyrano, my old friend, I'll explain everything to yourself, Onaha and Tin-Tin later on," he said quietly. "This evening maybe, when everything's calmed down."

Kyrano nodded again. "Very good, Mr Tracy," he replied. "My family and I shall await your call at the setting of the sun." Without waiting for an answer Kyrano turned and hurried from the room, closing the door as he left.

Jeff turned towards the desk in order to serve the drinks only to find his mother holding a ready-filled cup out in his direction. He took the cup, sipped the coffee and let out an appreciative groan before looking guiltily over to Alan's portrait. Jeff and the boys generally didn't eat or drink in front of an active connection to Five as it had long been decided that it was cruel to whoever was up there when they only had access to relatively bland rations or whatever contraband they had smuggled up there at the time. Alan's screen was still active but Alan himself was nowhere to be seen.

Gordon excused himself and slipped from the room. When he returned he was more composed and it was clear to everyone that he'd been out to wash the tear tracks from his face. Grandma handed him a coffee and he walked back across the room Alan walked back into his screen and placed a hand up to the glass. "Gords," he said quietly. "Are you OK?"

Gordon diverted from his course towards his chair and stopped in front of Alan's screen. He pressed his hand up to meet Alan's outstretched one and nodded. "It's just been a really weird couple of days."

Alan nodded and then dropped his hand as Jeff walked up behind Gordon and wrapped his arms around him. "It most certainly has. The four of you have coped fantastically though and I'm proud of you all."

Scott pulled Virgil from the sofa and over to where Jeff and Gordon were standing. Jeff adjusted his hold on Gordon and opened his arms to his two approaching sons. They four remained that way for several minutes and when they untangled themselves Jeff realised that Gordon had attempted to include Alan in the hug by once again pressing his hand against Alan's on the screen.


	35. Chapter 35

~#~ (Chapter 35)

Mrs Tracy settled back into her chair and smiled as she watched Jeff wrap his arms around his boys. She had always been proud of her only son; from his excellent grades at school, through to his astronaut training and the development of his successful business empire. All that paled into insignificance though, up against how he had brought up his boys. Losing his wife less than six months after his beloved father had died from a sudden and unexpected heart attack would have been enough to destroy many men and Mrs Tracy had always suspected that it might have destroyed Jeff too, had it not been for the boys. Her son had been forced to make some huge changes to his work commitments in order to care for his children and had moved from active space missions into an earth based consultancy role before finally quitting the space agency completely to better focus on his rapidly-expanding company, Tracy Industries.

Even though a great deal of his time was taken up with work, Jeff had still managed to keep some stability within the family. With Mrs Tracy helping out with picking up and dropping off, Scott, John and Virgil had remained at their mainline schools until after their final exams. Gordon and Alan unfortunately hadn't been quite so lucky because they'd had to move to a private boarding school when the family relocated to Tracy Island. The initial upset of this was forgotten though after the first school break when the boys were able to fly home to their own personal piece of paradise.

When Jeff and the boys broke out of their hug and spread back out around the room Grandma decided it was her chance to speak.

"Jefferson," she said quietly. "Do you know how long Johnny's going to be away?"

Jeff shook his head. "He's not going to be back for at least a few weeks. Jacob hasn't got a passport yet, that's one of the things that John's got to sort out in the next couple of days. Even if he did have one though, there's no way he's coming back here until his arm's properly sorted out because, quite frankly, our infirmary just wasn't designed or equipped with infant care in mind. Virgil, I'm going to ask you and Onaha to think about that over the next week or so. The pair of you need to get your heads together and come up with a list of what we need to make the infirmary Jacob friendly."

Mrs Tracy looked between her son and grandson as Virgil nodded. "Jefferson, you do realise you're going to have to do that for the rest of the house and not just the infirmary? It's all very well making it possible for someone to care for the boy should he become sick or injured but it's far more important that he's not put in harms way in the first place. I don't suppose he can crawl yet so that will make things easier for a short while but just as soon as he becomes mobile this house is going to become one great big death trap."

Jeff stood up and studied the room with Mrs Tracy's words in mind. His mother was right, of course, the neatly ordered house worked perfectly for the group of fully-grown adults that currently lived in it but there were potential dangers all round for an inquisitive toddler. Every socket would have to be covered, the stairs secured and as for the pool…

Mrs Tracy could almost see the thoughts rolling through Jeff's mind. "Which of you was it?" she asked. "…that kept throwing themselves in the pool when we were on holiday that time? Three times in one week, if I remember rightly, wasn't it Jeff?"

Jeff snorted. "Oh my, I'd forgotten that. It was four times in three days," he laughed. "And who else could it have been except for Gordon? We should have guessed then that he was destined to do great things in the water." Gordon looked at his knees and blushed as Jeff looked at him and continued, "Your mother had felt the need to get as far away from Kansas as possible and apparently, despite having the five of you in tow, the south of France apparently fit the bill. God, Gordon, you can't have been all that old because Alan had his first birthday while we were away but I remember you being an absolute menace virtually the whole time. You were too young to understand why Scott and John could spend hours in the pool but you were only allowed in the water when one of the adults was in there with you."

Mrs Tracy nodded. "No matter who you were with or where you were left, you somehow kept managing to get yourself back down to that pool. The first time you went in your grandfather jumped in, fully clothed, to fish you out."

Jeff smiled broadly. "And he had some choice words to say about it too, once he was out of range of delicate ears, of course. From memory I think Scott saw you heading for the pool the second time and caught you as you fell headfirst into the water. One of the other guests fished you out the third time and the last time you did it, on the last day of the holiday I hasten to add, you got away from your mother and ran full pelt straight down the stairs and into the water, shoes and all."

Scott and Virgil sniggered as Gordon blushed again.

"Mother, your point is very much taken. We're going to have to have a long hard think about what needs doing with the house and I'm sure Onaha can help us with that as well. It's just as well we've got plenty of room." Jeff stopped as a thought came to him. "Come to think of it, I don't know what John's going to do furniture-wise. Presumably Rosie's apartment will have everything that Jacob needs in it but I'm not sure how practical it will be to try and transport some of the larger items all the way here. It may be easier to start from scratch, maybe gather everything together somewhere and then put it all on a boat…" Jeff shook his head. "I'll talk to John. Once he's got the keys we'll know more. Now, does anyone have anything else that they want to ask or say?" No-one did, so Jeff smiled. "I have more photos. Who wants to take a look?"


	36. Chapter 36

~#~ (Chapter 36)

Jeff, Grandma and the boys spent another half an hour in the seclusion of the sitting room before splitting off and spreading out all over the house. Grandma, confident that Kyrano wouldn't question her about the family meeting, retreated to the kitchen to help the Malaysian man put together the evening meal. Gordon went straight out to the pool and quickly swam several lengths but his heart wasn't really in it and he soon gave up, flipped onto his back and floated, deep in thought, on the surface of the water.

Virgil stayed on the sofa for a short while before getting slowly to his feet and heading for his piano. Jeff looked as if he was going to follow but Scott jumped up before he could manage it. "I've got him," he whispered as he moved to follow Virgil from the room.

Jeff sent a worried look in Virgil's direction and then gave Scott a tight smile before reaching out to clasp his eldest son's hands tightly as he walked by. Scott started slightly as Jeff clung to him but as he looked deep into Jeff's eyes it was immediately obvious how worried the older man actually was. "Don't worry, Father. We'll be fine…Tracys stick together, remember?"

Jeff nodded and sunk back against the edge of his desk before looking up at the still-live feed from Alan. "You going to be alright up there on your own?" he asked. "I promise I'll do all I can to get you back on terra-firma just as soon as I can. OK?" Alan nodded so Jeff continued. "I'm going to call Penny in a moment so I can let her and Brains know what's going on. At the same time I'll try to get a better indication as to when Brains is likely to return. In the meantime, I know there's been a lot to take in this afternoon so I'll tell you what I told John…if you feel the need to talk, you can always call me. Don't…Alan, don't sit up there and stew…just call. And it doesn't matter what time, day or night, OK?"

Alan nodded. "I understand, Father," he said. "…and thank you." After a short pause he spoke again. "I'd leave it a while before you call Penelope, Father. I think it's probably a bit too early there at the moment, especially for news like that."

Jeff looked at his watch and realised it was still set to Tasmanian time. Leaning over to look at the clock on his computer, he worked out what the time would be in England and grimaced. "I see what you mean," he agreed. "I know she wouldn't complain but I don't really think Penny would appreciate me calling _quite_ that early. I guess I'll leave it until later on."

Alan chuckled. "No, I don't suppose she would. I'll see you soon, Father."

"See you soon, Alan…and take care of yourself." Jeff watched as Alan leant across to cut the connection, leaving his father to a rare moment of total peace.

Jeff crossed the room and sat down on the sofa where Scott and Virgil had been. The discussion with the boys and Grandma had gone better than he had hoped, even if it had brought up the issue of manning Thunderbird 5 before he'd really had a chance to think about it.

The tranquil sounds of a piano melody began to flow through the house and Jeff sat and listened as he sorted through his thoughts and memories of the last few days.

The next thing he knew was Scott gently shaking him awake and telling him that it was time for dinner.

~#~

After dinner was over and the dishes had been washed and put away, the boys made themselves scarce. Jeff gathered Kyrano, Onaha and Tin-Tin on the chairs around the pool and told them about Jacob. He asked whether Onaha would mind helping with the day to day care of Jacob and also explained that Virgil would be approaching her over the next few days in regards to the stocking of the infirmary with child-friendly medicines and remedies.

Onaha had helped her mother raise her eight younger brothers and sisters and had always planned to have a large family herself. Nature unfortunately had different plans for the gentle Malaysian woman though as Onaha had needed an emergency hysterectomy just hours after giving birth to Tin-Tin. She was overjoyed and very excited at being asked to help out with Jacob, even if it was for only a few hours a day while the Tracys worked or sometimes just to give John a break. She also agreed to start thinking about the infirmary so that when Virgil eventually came to speak to her she would have some ideas for him. She quickly made her excuses and left the pool area at a trot. Jeff watched her go and couldn't help but think that she was probably going straight off to start planning.

Kyrano watched as Onaha scurried down the path towards their home. Unflappable as always, he told Jeff that he understood the need for privacy earlier that afternoon and then congratulated him on his new status of grandfather. He thanked Jeff for giving Onaha the opportunity to help out with Jacob because, hopefully, there wouldn't be any grandchildren in their own family for quite some time yet. He said this with a pointed look towards Tin-Tin which made her blush furiously. "Father, please," she squeaked. "You know there's no chance of that." She held her hand in the two men's direction to prove to them that Alan's promise ring was still in place. "_That_ is definitely _not_ going to happen any time soon."

Kyrano smiled and inclined his head in Tin-Tin's direction. Jeff watched the interaction between the two and it became clear to him that this particular conversation, or one very much like it, had obviously taken place several times before. Tin-Tin had been wearing Alan's ring for several years and it remained on her finger at all times, even during the now-legendary arguments that occasionally exploded between the pair. Tin-Tin's easy-going nature was usually the perfect counterbalance to Alan's fiery temper but even she knew that there were times when she had to step back, let Mount-Alan erupt and then do her best to help clear up the potentially-devastating aftermath.


	37. Chapter 37

~#~ (Chapter 37)

The vid-phone unit sounded while Jeff was outside talking to Kyrano and Tin-Tin. Scott stuck his head out of his door to see if anyone was about. Deciding that no-one else was going to answer the call he wandered into Jeff's office and dropped down into the comfortable leather chair. He looked at his watch, grinned and pressed the button to connect the call. "Hi John."

John's face appeared on the screen and he looked temporarily taken aback that Scott had answered the call instead of Jeff. "Uh, hi Scott," he began. "I wasn't expecting you. Where's Dad? Is he OK?"

Scott smiled. "He's fine. He's just talking to Tin-Tin and her parents," he explained. "…out by the pool. Look, John, you need to know that he got Grandma and the four of us together in the sitting room this afternoon and told us what's been going on. It's…well, to use Alan's description…'huge'. I can kind of understand now why Father got so frazzled after he opened that letter."

John shrugged. "I know. I didn't have a clue why he suddenly recalled me from Five but I wouldn't have put 'you have a six month old son' down in a list of a hundred reasons he might have needed to speak to me. That couldn't have come a lot further out of left field if it had tried."

"Hmm, impregnating women and using baseball analogies?" Scott raised an eyebrow and smirked. "Who are you and what have you done with my brother?"

John chuckled. "Scott, behave," he said and then blushed. "I guess the…um…impregnating thing was my fault…um…sort of but you can blame the baseball solely on Alan. About a week and a half ago he was raving on and on about some big game that he'd watched. He couldn't sleep and ended up talking to me about it for hours." John stopped and breathed deeply. "So, everyone knows?"

"About Jacob? Yes." Scott nodded and smiled at his younger brother. "Oh, well, no. No-one's spoken to Penny yet so neither she nor Brains know anything." Scott leaned nearer to the screen. "Have you got Jacob with you? I wouldn't mind catching a glimpse of the little guy. From the pictures he looks a lot like Alan."

John smiled and then shrugged. "I think he looks like Alan but Father says he looks like me. He sure looks like Alan when he's upset though, he gets the same little tram-lines on his forehead that Alan gets when he's angry." John paused and chuckled as Scott theatrically grabbed at his chest and gasped "No, tell me it's not true. There can't be another one!"

John rolled his eyes and shook his head at his eldest brother's antics. "Anyway, you can't see him at the moment. I'm not allowed to take him further than the hospital gardens until he's discharged, I just came back to the hotel to call in at my usual time. I worked it out right, didn't I?"

Scott nodded. "Yeah, you did. I noticed it was nine o'clock when I answered but I think Father's timing's a bit screwed up what with flying across the date line and everything. I thought he was looking a bit washed out when he got back here but he fell asleep after talking to us all and seemed a lot brighter when I woke him for dinner. Do you want me to go and get him?"

John shook his head. "No, it's OK," he said. "I just wanted to tell him that I have Rosie's keys but, Scott, I don't know what to do now. Do I wait for him to come back before I go in or do I go with Uncle Jo, tomorrow?"

"I can't answer that for you, John," Scott replied. "Only you can decide that one for yourself but if Dad's planning on staying here for a few days it might make sense to at least take a look inside with Joel. Father said something about you getting the keys to the apartment when we were talking about furniture."

John cocked his head to one side. "Furniture?" he asked. "What furniture?"

Scott smiled. "Furniture for Jacob, you great dolt. I don't know if you've noticed but most of the stuff here is kind of grown up sized? You see, Dad was saying how Jacob couldn't come here until his arm's all sorted and then he had some sort of epiphany about the fact that the infirmary isn't currently equipped for small children. He set Virgil on the case and told him to get Onaha to help get it ready for Jacob's arrival. Grandma then whapped him with the fact that the whole house was going to need work to make it child-friendly and used our holiday in Saint-Tropez as an example of what can happen with a toddler around."

John frowned in thought. "Oh God, not Gordon and the pool?" he asked and then burst out laughing. "Wow, that was so long ago. So it went from preparing the infirmary, through childproofing the house and ended up on furniture? Oh, I see. Jacob's going to have furniture in Rosie's apartment…I hadn't even thought about that. When I thought about the apartment I was thinking mainly about Jacob's clothes and toys and maybe any photograph albums, or the like, that I could find. I don't have all that many good pictures of Rosie and Jacob's going to need photos of her around if he's going to feel any sort link to her when he's bigger. It's the same as Dad keeping so many pictures of Mama out on display so that Alan…and Gordon to some extent, can remember her when they had so little time with her when she was alive."

Scott and John took a quiet moment to ponder the fact that out of five boys there were only three of them who truly remembered their mother. Gordon had a few scarce real memories of his time with Lucille but Alan had been forced to learn most of what he knew about her from his brothers, grandmother and, on the occasions when he felt up to talking about his deceased wife, his father.

Eventually Scott broke the silence. "Father was wondering about the practicalities of shipping furniture from there to here. He said that he'd speak to you about it but I think he was working along the lines that it might be easier to start again from scratch. He put forward the idea of gathering everything together in one place and getting it shipped over here as a job lot, I assume he meant getting a container or something…"

John nodded. "There's a lot of sense in that and to be honest I think I'd feel a bit…weird taking Rosie's things…even if is all legally mine now." Scott raised his eyebrows at this so John explained. "Dad wanted Alex and Joel to check over Rosie's finances before I signed anything but apparently it was a pretty easy job. Rosie hadn't had any sort of job since she moved over here and had been living on her savings…which were running out. A couple of weeks ago she'd applied for help from the local council to pay the rent but the application was still under review so I don't know what she'd have done over the next couple of months because she wouldn't have had any money left to live by. Scott, why didn't she get in touch? She didn't need to live like that. I could have given her anything she needed…even if she didn't want to take anything from me for herself then I could have at least provided for Jacob."

Scott was dismayed to see tears building in John's eyes when he was stuck so far out of reach. "Aw, Johnny, don't," he pleaded, automatically falling back to using the diminutive version of his brother's name that he used to use when the pair were little. "You can't start second guessing Rosie's decisions, that'll just eat you up inside. You may never know why she did what she did but you just have to tell yourself that she had good reason and that she thought what she was doing was for the best."

John nodded briefly and ran a hand across his eyes to clear the unshed tears from where they were clinging to his pale eyelashes. "Sorry," he mumbled. "I've been doing that a fair bit over the past few days; I think my emotions are way too close to the surface at the moment."

"I think that's only to be expected," Scott said quietly. "…and don't think anyone will think anything bad of you for tearing up. What is it Penny always says?"

"There's nothing like a good cry to cleanse the soul," John replied. "And you know, I think she might be right. I've done more crying over the past few days than I've done in years but I think I'd have probably exploded somewhere along the way if I hadn't. I've cried all over Dad, Scott, I've yelled at him, got in his face and dumped all my problems on him. He's been great about everything and I don't know how I'm ever going to repay him."

"Don't you worry about that, John. I think you'll find that giving him with his first grandchild will have been payment enough," Scott suggested. "Unless one of Gordon's wild oats accidentally takes root then I can't imagine that the next generation of Tracys is going to be particularly numerous and if I had to hazard a guess I'd say that any other grandchildren would have to come from Tin-Tin. For Alan's sake though I would hope that won't happen any time soon." Scott had no way of knowing that he'd used almost the exact same expression that Tin-Tin herself had used when assuring Kyrano that she wasn't planning on becoming pregnant in the immediate future. "Back to what we were saying before though," he continued. "If you don't want to take anything from the apartment then someone else might be able to make good use of it. I'm sure one of the goodwill shops or charities would be more than pleased to take the furniture off your hands for someone who really needs it."

John nodded thoughtfully. "That's true," he agreed. "And at least that way Rosie will have helped someone around here who is possibly in a worse situation than she was…"

Scott refrained from commenting even though he heard John's unspoken 'even if she'd chosen to put herself in that situation in the first place'.

John sighed. "I guess I might take Joel and have a look tomorrow," he said eventually. "At least we'll know exactly what is and isn't there then. We were messing around with paperwork most of this morning so I haven't got to see much of Jacob today. I want to get back to the hospital as soon as I can then I can spend the rest of the afternoon with him."

Scott nodded. "Are you sure you don't want to speak to Dad?" he asked. "I'm sure he won't mind coming in to talk to you."

John shook his head. "No, Scott, leave him be. If he's still talking to Kyrano and the others then I wouldn't want to interrupt. I'll disappear and let you get back to whatever you were doing before I called."

Scott smiled. "I wasn't doing a lot," he chuckled. "Give Jacob an extra cuddle from me…and John?" he added, "Don't be a stranger. You know where I am if you need me. If you feel you can't talk to Father for whatever reason or if you can't get hold of him but need to talk then please, call me."

"Thanks Scott." John nodded as he replied. "I will. Say hi to the others for me?"

Scott smiled. "No probs. Gordon's probably going to lynch me for not letting him speak to you but never mind…Night John."

John looked towards the window and grinned. "Good afternoon Scott," he said and then pressed the button to disconnect the call. He flopped back onto his bed and let out a deep breath as he stared at the ceiling. He had been worried about how his eldest brother was going to react to the news about Jacob and he was grateful that Scott had turned out to be nothing but supportive. John chuckled to himself as he thought back over the end of the conversation. Joel had always said that it was Scott's responsibility to father the next generation of Tracy children and none of the others had ever had a mention in that respect. He wondered what Joel would think if he knew that Scott had silently handed all responsibility for that down to the youngest member of their family. He then snorted and wondered what Alan would say if he ever realised the same thing.

John dragged himself up from where he had slumped on the bed. He then tidied himself up a little and headed out of the hotel to spend the rest of the afternoon with his son.


	38. Chapter 38

~#~ (Chapter 38)

Scott made his way back to his room where he sat down at his desk and mulled over the conversation he'd just had with John. After a few minutes of quiet contemplation he chuckled and a smile spread across his face. Scott jumped to his feet, strode from the room and into Jeff's office. He opened the drink cabinet, removed a bottle of Scotch and two glasses and then set off to find his father.

Jeff was sitting alone by the pool. The Tracy patriarch had finished talking to Kyrano and Tin-Tin about fifteen minutes before but had remained seated at one of the glass-topped tables. He was at a loss of what to do as he was wide awake and everyone else was winding down because the day was drawing to a close. He jumped slightly as Scott appeared behind him and reached over to gently place the Scotch and glasses on the table.

"Father?" Scott asked. "What are you doing out here by yourself?"

Jeff looked across to his eldest son. "Would you believe that I'm not sure what to do with myself? I'm only going to be back here for a few days and I don't want to disrupt what you've been doing by jumping in and then jumping back out when I disappear again. Scott, you do a fantastic job, keeping everything running when I'm away and I don't want to make it look like I'm checking up on you by going and sitting in my office. Bear in mind as well that it's late and you lot have been up all day while my body's telling me that it's really some time tomorrow afternoon even though I had that unscheduled nap _this_ afternoon."

"That time-travel thing's no fun," Scott agreed. "That's one of the good things about Tracy Industries being where it is, there's only a couple of hours difference between here and there."

Jeff nodded his agreement. "Makes life a lot easier," he commented. "Mind you, John obviously never had a problem with going backwards and forwards. It sounds as if he'd been visiting Rosie in New Zealand for years and the time difference for there is even worse."

Scott spun the lid off the Scotch, poured a generous portion into one of the glasses and pushed it towards Jeff. He then poured a much smaller amount into the second glass, resealed the bottle and sat back on his chair. Jeff looked between the glasses with a quizzical expression on his face until Scott quietly reminded him that while Jeff was equivalently off duty, he was not.

"I still can't understand how come we didn't realise John had a girl," the younger of the two men said after a couple of minutes of comfortable silence. "I mean, I know he's the quietest of all of us and that he keeps himself to himself a lot, even when he's here, but still…that's a big chunk of his life to keep completely hidden from us. Did he keep quiet deliberately so we wouldn't tease him when he left the island or do you think he just took the 'family secret' thing a little too seriously?"

Jeff took a sip of his Scotch while he composed his reply. "I…" he said eventually, "I don't know if he would have even realised that he was doing it but I think that he may have been hiding his and Rosie's relationship from me." Jeff left his words hanging as he took another drink.

"What?" Scott asked, shaking his head. "…or should that be _'why'_? Why would he do that? And what makes you think that's what he was doing?"

Jeff frowned. "John…John asked me why I didn't go postal on him when I found out about Jacob," he said sadly. "Why I didn't…how did he put it? Oh, yes, why I didn't tear strips off him the moment he got back from Five. He reminded me of all the times I'd drilled into you all about the 'right order to do things' and how I'd never condoned sex before marriage or pre-marital overnight stays. I didn't realise I'd been so stringent about it but after Alan's comments earlier I've realised that I may have pushed my point across a little too strongly over the years. Maybe you should have all just ignored what I was saying, I'm just an old hypocrite after all's said and done."

Scott choked on his drink and then frantically swallowed as the wrongly-routed Scotch made his eyes burn and his nose sting. Jeff clapped him hard on his back and after a burst of raucous coughing Scott finally managed to clear his airways. "Don't," he squeaked, "…make me do that again. You might be an 'old hypocrite' but you've only ever had our best interests at heart and I think it's pretty obvious that at least three of us took what you were saying with a hefty pinch of salt anyway. I certainly did, John put his own spin on it and…no offence intended in any way but when Gordon discovered girls he didn't even bother with the pinch, he went right off with the whole barrel…and you never said a thing."

"I know. I really should have spoken to him," Jeff replied quietly. "Believe me, I know. I've been far more lenient with Gordon than the rest of you…it's just…his accident was the closest I've come to losing one of you since we lost your mother. How could I reprimand him for having a little fun after he came so close to death? How could I pull him up and chastise him after he put so much work into just getting back on his feet, let alone the time and effort it took for him to become fully independent again. How, Scott?" Jeff knocked back the rest of his drink and dropped the glass back onto the tabletop, breathing heavily.

Scott watched his father and realised that it wasn't only John's emotions that were running close to the surface. John had told him that Jeff had been a pillar of strength over the past few days but it seemed to Scott that Jeff's emotional barriers were falling away now that he was back on the island. The stress of having to remain strong for John was showing on their father and the older man was tired, jetlagged and emotionally wrung out.

Scott leaned over and grasped Jeff's right hand. "You couldn't, Father," he replied. "…and I understand what you're saying…about Gordon being a special case, I mean."

Jeff one-handedly opened the Scotch bottle and poured a small amount into his empty glass. He then sat the glass on his lap and nursed it, all the while still holding onto Scott's hand. "All five of you are special to me, Scott. Virgil has his…issues, John is incredibly bright and Alan's the baby of the family. You…you'll always be special because you were first."

Scott squeezed Jeff's hand and looked down to study the tabletop. Jeff's burst of apparent distress had only lasted for a couple of minutes and he seemed to have mellowed into a contemplative mood.

The two remained by the pool until Scott became tired and went to bed. Jeff looked at his watch and wandered into his office to call Penelope.


	39. Chapter 39

~#~ (Chapter 39)

"Creighton Ward residence. 'ow may h'I h'assist you?" Parker answered the vidphone in his usual courteous manner then paused to wait for a reply. Jeff's face popped up on the screen so he continued his greeting. "H'oh, good day to you, Mr Tracy, sir. H'are you wishing to speak to Mr 'ackenbacker or 'er ladyship this morning?"

Jeff couldn't help but smile at the Lady Penelope's long-time friend and confidante. "Good morning Parker, I'd like to speak to Penny. I only hope it's not too early."

"H'early sir?" Parker queried. "H'I am certain that you could never call too h'early for 'er ladyship. Milady is currently breaking 'er fast h'in the dining room, h'I shall divert you through to 'er now."

Jeff nodded. "Thank you Parker. Just one more thing though, before you transfer me. I'm just wondering how you and Brains are getting on with the car. Have you tracked down the problem?

"That we 'ave, Mr Tracy," Parker exclaimed. "H'I am pleased to h'announce that the car is back h'in tip top condition. The problem was caused by h'a defective relay which 'ad h'in turn cut power to some of the h'ignition circuits. Mr 'ackenbacker believes h'it to 'ave been an h'error h'in the manufacturing of said relay."

"Hmm," Jeff replied with a frown. "We shall have to get Brains to investigate that properly. We'll be forced to stop using the supplier if they're going to start sending out shoddy parts. There's just too much at stake to risk using anything but the best parts on the 'birds. Well anyway, it's great news that FAB1 is all back up and running. I'll speak to Penny now, if you'd do the honours."

"Very good, sir," Parker nodded and connected Jeff to the vidphone in the dining room. Once Penelope answered the call he continued tidying away the pots and pans that had been used to make breakfast.

~#~

Penelope smiled sweetly as Jeff's face replaced Parker's on the vidphone screen. "Why Jeff, what a perfectly lovely way to start the morning," she said. "Although I have to say you are looking a little pale. I do hope you're not coming down with something?"

Jeff smiled, ran his hand through his hair and then reclined back against the soft leather of his chair. "I'm fine, Penny," he replied. "I'm just a bit jetlagged, that's all and maybe a little weary after a fraught couple of days."

"Jetlagged?" Penelope asked. "Where have you been to be getting jetlagged...and more to the point why? Could you not have sent Scott or maybe Virgil instead of flying out somewhere yourself?"

Jeff chuckled and shook his head. "No, Penny, in this case it was something that I couldn't delegate and I wouldn't have wanted to, even if I could have. I've been in Tasmania with John…and my new grandson, Jacob."

"But John is…" Penelope was about to point out that John was still supposed to be aboard Thunderbird 5 when the final words of Jeff's sentence sunk in. "Jeff?" she asked. "What did you just say? You've been in Tasmania with…and…and..."

Jeff took pity on Penelope and leaned towards the screen. "I've been in Tasmania…" he stopped and waited until Penelope nodded. "…with John," he paused again and received another nod. "…and my new grandson, Jacob."

Penelope blinked and shook her head. "Oh my, Jeff. That's what I thought you'd said. But…but you can't mean John…"

"Oh yes," Jeff nodded with a grin. "That's exactly what I mean."

Penelope looked stunned. "John? But how? When? Details, Jeff, I need details."

Jeff laughed loudly. "Oh Penny, you know you're worse than Tin-Tin when you get the bit between your teeth," he said. "I'm not going through the 'hows' with you because you're a grown woman and you can work it out for yourself. As for the 'whens' and the other details, well I'll tell you what I know. Jacob, John's son, my grandson, is six months old. He's blonde like both his mother and father and is the spitting image of his Daddy. John didn't know anything about the baby until I opened one of his letters which had been sent to tell him that Rosie, Jacob's mother, had been killed in a car wreck a couple of weeks before."

"Oh, poor John," Penelope gasped. "That poor boy. Jeff, I don't know John as well as I do the other four but I don't remember him ever mentioning a girlfriend. Were they close? Had they been together long?"

Jeff nodded sadly. "You didn't hear John mentioning a girlfriend because, quite frankly, he never did…to _any_ of us, not even to Scott. Over the past few days he's gradually opened up and told me that he and Rosie had been together since college. He reminded me that we were all introduced to her at their graduation and that he'd remained in touch with her from then right up until just over a year ago."

"Just over a year ago?" Penelope mused. "And the baby's six months old, you say?" Jeff could almost see the cogs turning in Penelope's mind. "Oh," she said quietly. "Oh, I see. Well, John's a secretive soul, that's for sure. Although I suppose the fact that he keeps himself to himself is what makes him perfect for his particular job. Oh…"

Jeff nodded again. "Yes, that's something we know we're going to have to think about. Alan's up there for now but he can't stay up there forever and apparently I should be glad I wasn't around when Mother found out I'd swapped him and John over. Alan's being up on Five is part of the reason for me calling, apart from telling you about Jacob of course, I need to find out how long Brains is likely to be away. Parker tells me that FAB1 is back on the road again now but Gordon said that you and Brains were probably going to visit a science display in Cambridge?"

"I never told Gordon _I_ was going to the display," Penelope replied, shaking her head. "I said that I thought Brains would like to go. I believe I may have also said that it would have been something that would have interested John but that because he was 'at work' he obviously wouldn't be able to attend."

Jeff nodded. "Ah, I see. So Brains is going alone?" he asked. "Is that today? Tomorrow? Both?"

"Yes, dear," Penelope replied cryptically and then expanded her answer when Jeff raised an eyebrow at her. "It's on today, tomorrow and the rest of the week. Brains has gone today. He left at six this morning and I'm expecting him back some time after five. I'm sure when he hears the news that he'll want to come straight back home. Parker can bring him tonight if Gordon's busy."

Jeff smiled. "I was thinking more along the lines of letting Scott out for the trip. I've told him that I'm not going to take over again here until I'm back for good but I'm worried he's going to start getting cabin fever if he's grounded for at least another week. I'm sure we can spare him long enough for him to have a little jaunt up to visit you in England. If you wouldn't mind the company then I'm sure he'd be only too happy to have a cup of tea and a slice of cake before he flies our bespectacled genius home again."

Penelope laughed. "I'm sure that can be arranged. I'll have Lillian rustle up a little something once we know when he's coming or would you rather assume that Brains will be coming home and have Scott come over for dinner. If we eat at seven Scott will be ready for lunch anyway. Oh Jeff, listen to me I'm babbling and it's not even eight o'clock yet. Do you want to send Scott over for dinner or not?"

"Penny, Penny," Jeff scolded gently. "You can babble to me all you like and yes, I'll send Scott over for dinner tonight. It'll be good for him to get off the island for a while and also for him to have some civilised conversation that doesn't involve baseball, racing cars or the cut of Suzette Larou's latest bikini."

Penelope frowned slightly, trying to place Suzette Larou. Suddenly it came to her. "Oh, that's the…Gordon I assume?" Suzette Larou was the latest trashy, big-busted glamour model to grace the 'Z list' celebrity circuit. The young woman was barely out of her teens but regularly made the news by stumbling out of nightclubs partially dressed and falling into, or on occasion, out of bed with various famous actors and sports stars.

"Gordon and Alan too, I'm afraid," Jeff replied with a chuckle. "Although I've noticed that Alan's careful not to mention her when Tin-Tin's around. It seems that she's not all that fond of Ms Larou."

"Oh dear," Penelope said quietly. "In that case maybe it would be prudent of me to invite Tin-Tin for dinner as well. I seem to remember that Thunderbird 1 can carry two passengers, am I right?"

"You're right," Jeff confirmed. "I'll suggest it at breakfast but I think it's safe to say you'll be having three guests for dinner instead of just the two. While I've got you, there's another thing I need to talk to you about. It concerns how your diary's fixed for the next week or so."

Penelope pulled out an elegant gem-encrusted PDA and checked through her calendar. "There's nothing in here that can't be rearranged," she announced after a couple of minutes. "Although a little notice would be useful. What is it you need me to do, Jeff?"

Jeff explained how he'd discovered that Rosie's body was still in the funeral home and told her that he was going to spend the next day arranging the funeral on John's behalf. He briefly explained about John's emotional breakdown and how he'd almost completely shut down when Jeff had told him that Rosie had never been laid to rest. Penelope made sympathetic noises as he spoke and offered to help out in any way she could but Jeff told her that he would handle all the arrangements. He asked if Penelope would attend the funeral both to support himself and so that there was another friendly face and comforting shoulder available to help John through what was bound to be a stressful and upsetting day.

Penelope agreed immediately and Jeff relaxed further into his chair. The Scotch that Scott had liberally dosed him with earlier that evening had gradually percolated through his system and the warm air of the enclosed office was working against the jetlag to make him drowsy.

Penelope could sense that Jeff was flagging and wrapped up the conversation by telling him that it was time for all good Tracy men to be in bed. She confirmed that at least Scott, if not Tin-Tin as well, would be with her for dinner that evening. She also told him that she would wait for her guests to arrive rather than breaking the news about Jacob to Brains herself. She felt that it would be better for Brains if Scott told him about the boy although she admitted that she was looking forward to seeing Parker's face when she told him.

Jeff had the distinct impression that Parker would be finding out about Jacob almost as soon as the vidphone call was finished. He chuckled, wished Penelope a good day, promised to be in touch in the next couple of days and ended the call.

The glare from the vidscreen faded and the office fell silent. Jeff remained in his chair for several minutes as he contemplated the unpleasant task he'd set himself for the following day. With a sigh he dragged himself out of the chair and wandered from the office to do his usual checks on the exterior doors of the villa. He then stumbled tiredly to his bedroom, changed quietly into his pyjamas and then dropped onto his bed and into a deep and dreamless sleep.

~#~

**Author note:**

**Hello readers. I'd like to send out a huge amount of thanks to those of you who have taken the time to either post a review or send me a private message with kind words about my stories and my writing style. Moving into the Thunderbirds genre has turned out to be an interesting and challenging experience because it involves writing with such a vastly different set of parameters to those of the Stargate universe! **

**To those of you patiently waiting for an update on my Stargate stories - Please be assured that they have not been abandoned but have been carefully placed to one side while I am having a little fun with the Tracy boys. I am particularly looking forward to continuing 'Sticks and Stones' as it is so nearly finished and I will take another look at it just as soon as I manage to screw my Stargate head back on again!**

**Lastly: I am away on holiday all next week so this will probably be the last update for about a fortnight. I aim to be writing while I'm away but will not have access to my beta reader until after my return so will be unable to post.**


	40. Chapter 40

~#~ (Chapter 40)

John spent a pleasant afternoon at the hospital with Jacob before meeting up with Joel. Over dinner he raised the possibility of going and taking a look around Rosie's apartment the next morning. Joel was shocked that John would want to go with himself instead of Jeff, knowing that John had already paid the next three months' rent on the property so there was no rush to go in. The younger man eventually persuaded him that it couldn't hurt to take a look now that they had the keys.

~#~

The next morning John and Joel set out in John's rental car and followed the directions to Rosie's apartment. They were surprised to find themselves heading back up the highway, towards the airport and into the area of cheap student accommodation near to the Polytechnic.

When they arrived at the address, John switched off the engine and sat in silence, staring at the faded yellow paint that was peeling from the exterior of the apartment building. He was noticeably shocked at the run down state of the structure and Joel laid a comforting hand on his shoulder before he could make any attempt to get out of the car.

"Johnny," he said quietly. "Remember you don't have to do this. If you still want to go in now then that's fine but there's no problem if you choose not to. I won't be offended if you decide to wait for Jeff and he certainly won't object if you decide not to go in at all."

John sucked in a deep breath. "No," he replied. "This is something I need to do. I need to see where Rosie was planning to bring up my baby. I need to know what she was planning for the future and I need to know why she couldn't talk to me and thought she'd be better off coming here. The only place I can possibly find any answers is in there." He paused and waved his hand in the direction of Rosie's apartment block. "If I can't go in there then I can't find out what I need to know." John was breathing heavily by the time he finished speaking. He was drastically trying to keep his emotions under control and coming closer to failure all the time.

"It's OK, Johnny," Joel gave his shoulder a squeeze. "Just take a moment and breathe properly. If you're determined to do this today then remember I'm with you. OK?"

John nodded shakily. "OK."

"Good," Joel gave John's shoulder another squeeze and then slowly lifted the hand away to allow John his freedom. "We'll take it one step at a time. Firstly I think we need to tackle getting out of the car. Do you think you can manage step one?"

John snorted. "Yeah, I kind of think I can manage that one." As if to demonstrate, he yanked the keys from the ignition, jumped from the car and slammed the door.

"Very good," Joel commented as he exited his own door and stepped around the car to stand beside John. "Step one complete. Ready for step two?"

"That would be 'go inside'?" John asked.

Joel smiled. "Not quite," he replied. "Step two would be move away from the car and approach the entrance. Actually going inside would be step three."

"Your steps are _really_ tiny, Uncle Jo," John said with a chuckle. "OK then, to the door." John turned around to face the building and took a hesitant step forward. Joel placed a supportive hand gently against the small of his back and pressed him in the direction of the building until he was level with the door. John leant his hand against the gaudy orange paint on the communal entrance door and stopped. "I…" he said quietly. "Uncle Jo, I can't do this."

Joel opened his mouth to reply but snapped it shut when the door under John's hand was wrenched open and an over-exuberant youth barrelled through the now-open doorway and straight into the unsuspecting Tracy.

John stumbled backwards as he was crashed into and regained his feet just before a second youth came charging through the doorway. The second youth stopped when he saw his friend glaring at an anxious-looking John and looked back and forth from one to the other. "What's goin' on?" he asked with a vicious tone in his voice. "Greg, man, you OK?"

Greg nodded. "Weirdos 'anging around the door again," he replied, nodding towards John. "Think I should take 'im down Si?"

Simon nodded with an inane grin on his face. "Yeah, do it G. Make 'im squeal, just like the last one."

Joel stepped forwards when it became obvious that John wasn't going to say a word to fend off the youths. He was concerned by Simon's words and worried that if Greg decided to 'take John down' that he would do so easily as the elder of the two blonde Tracys had never been good at defending himself. There had been many a time during high school when Scott had been forced to wade into the middle of a brawl to rescue his quiet, geeky brother and the year after he left for college had turned out to be the hardest school year of all for John. It took the bullies less than a week to realise that John's personal bodyguard was no longer there to defend him and they had started beating on him at every opportunity. It took some time for Virgil to discover what was going on but once he did, the middle Tracy brother took to trailing John around the school until he could identify the bullies. As soon as he knew for definite who they were Virgil confronted the ringleader and taught him once and for all that the Tracy family was not to be messed with. Jeff had blasted him for fighting and getting suspended from school, Scott had clapped him on the back and congratulated him and John had quietly pulled him to one side, thanked him and given him a very out-of-character hug.

"Now now boys," Joel said firmly, raising his hand in front of himself in a placating gesture. "That's quite enough of that talk. There'll be no 'taking down' of anybody around here this morning. My friend and I are visiting the building and contrary to popular belief, we were not hanging around the door. Had you not burst through it in such an exuberant manner we would have opened it for ourselves a few short moments later. Now, I rather think that you owe John an apology for nearly knocking him to the ground."

"Weren't my fault," Greg said sulkily. "'E was in my way. I ain't apologising and for that matter neither is Si. C'mon Si, let's get outta here these two ain't worth the hassle." With that he turned and walked away, sticking the middle finger of his right hand up behind him as he left.

Simon smirked and followed, leaving Joel to usher a still-silent John through the main door and up the stairs onto the cold and almost sterile concrete environment of the third floor landing. Once there he liberated Rosie's keys from John's hand, unlocked the door of apartment sixteen and pushed the unresisting Tracy into the room beyond.


	41. Chapter 41

~#~ (Chapter 41)

The click of the door behind John seemed to wake him from the stupor he had fallen into downstairs and he looked around curiously. The dilapidated exterior of the building had led John to think that the accommodation would be in poor condition as well but the apartment itself seemed, at first sight, to be relatively sound.

The two men stepped away from the door, ignored the kitchenette and walked further into the sitting room. The flowery patterned carpet in this room was worn thin in places and the furniture showed signs that it had been well used. The fact that the two sofa chairs were mismatched and that one leg of the table was propped up on a pile of coasters gave the impression that the furniture had been second hand before the room was furnished.

An oak dresser sat in one corner of the room. Rosie had obviously used the sturdy-looking piece of furniture as her desk so John pulled up a chair, sat down and ran his fingers gently across the items on the desktop. There were signs that someone had rather carelessly rummaged through the contents of the dresser because drawers had been left open and a pot of pens and pencils lay on its side. A photograph album sat open at one end and a pile of unopened mail sat on the other and suddenly John realised that the disturbance on the desk had more than likely been done by the police when they were attempting to find contact details for little Jacob's father. Even though they had left a mess behind them he thanked God that whoever had rifled through the dresser had done such a thorough job. They had kept looking until they'd found his name and address among the numerous bits of paper that Rosie had felt the need to keep in thes deep drawers.

"Uncle Jo," he said suddenly. "I'm going to have to go through all this aren't I?"

Joel had initially hung back near the door to the sitting room in order to allow John a modicum of privacy while still being a supportive presence. He appeared beside John the moment he spoke. "Someone's going to have to go through it," he agreed. "…and I think it probably should be yourself. It doesn't need doing today through and personally I'd vote for boxing the whole lot up and taking it back to the hotel. You don't really know what you're going to find in there but whatever's there is, remember you don't have to face it alone."

John nodded distractedly as he flicked through the first few pages of the photograph album. He found the empty spaces where the pictures sent to him by Hines & Huberts had originally resided and quickly came to the conclusion that there had to be an earlier album somewhere that had to hold Jacob's newborn baby pictures. He snapped the album shut and clasped it to his chest as he jumped to his feet, knocking the chair into Joel's legs as he pushed it out of his way. "There's got to be another book," he announced. "Help me find the other book."

Joel looked at him for a moment, shocked by the sudden change from the quiet and stunned, pacifistic John in the entrance hall to the suddenly frenetic 'all business' John who had appeared in the last minute. "Another album, you mean?" he asked. "What makes you so sure there's another one?"

John gently placed the book back on the desktop and opened the first page. "This is too new," he explained. "Nothing older than a couple of months, there's no tiny baby pictures. This…" John paused and waved his hand over the rest of the dresser. "…this is more or less irrelevant. This…" he stopped and pointed to the album. "…is why I'm here. This is Jacob's history and these photos are the only way he's ever going to know his mother. Now please, help me find the other book."

Joel nodded. "OK," he said quietly. "If it's here then we'll find it. You check the rest of the dresser and I'll take a look at the table."

The table was piled high with books and wobbled despite Rosie's obvious attempts to level it with the coasters. After a couple of minutes of flicking through the books Joel announced that he could see no sign of the missing photo album. John gave an exasperated snarl and slammed the door of the dresser as he too had failed to turn up any sign of any more photos. He stood up, thought for a moment and then grabbed the album that the police had gone through and walked slowly into the small hallway that linked the sitting room, bedroom and bathroom together. He pushed open the door at the far end of the hall, guessing it was the door to the bedroom and wandered inside.

Joel followed John into the room and stopped by the door as the younger man walked further into the room. John stopped and gently sniffed the air before closing his eyes and taking several deep breaths in and out. Eventually he opened his eyes and took a proper look around. Rosie's bedroom was very small and undeniably feminine. The walls were painted a soft shade of peach, the bedding was pink and flowery and there was a white, antique-looking dressing table on the wall opposite the door. Lace trimmed curtains hung at the tiny window and the air in the room held a fresh floral scent even after being closed up since Rosie's death.

Jacob's cot had been crammed into the space between Rosie's bed and the wall and took up so much of the floor space that Rosie would have only been able to climb into and out of her bed on the free side by the door. John skirted the bed and ran his hand along the bumpy, white-painted wood at the foot of the cot. This was another piece of furniture that had clearly seen better days and had been bought at least second, if not third, hand.

John wrinkled his nose and pulled his hand away. "I don't like this," he whispered to Joel. "It doesn't feel right. Help me find the book and then we can get out of here. I'll sort everything I can from the hotel but I'm not coming back here again…I just can't."

Joel nodded and pointed to the wall behind John where a pair of book shelves hung. "There," he said. "That matches the one in your hand. Check if that's what you're after and then we'll go back to the car."

John placed the book in his hands carefully on the end of Rosie's bed and reached up to pluck its twin from the shelf behind him. A cursory flick through the pages had him nodding to Joel that indeed it was the book containing Jacob's baby pictures and he bundled the two together in his arms before hurrying towards the door.

~#~

John shut himself in the car and sat, hugging the books close to his chest while Joel secured the apartment. He had the grace to look a little sheepish when Joel finally appeared, only to find that he couldn't get into the car. The lawyer had to knock on a window to attract John's attention and then had to ask him to unlock the doors so that he could get in.

"Are you OK, Johnny?" he asked quietly as he sat down. "You kind of bugged out of there pretty quickly."

John nodded. "I'm alright," he replied. "It's just…um…I don't know how to explain." He stopped and shook his head sadly.

"It's not what you would have wanted for Jacob?" Joel suggested. "Or more like it wasn't how or _where_ you would have wanted either of them to be living?"

John dropped his gaze to his knees and clasped the books tighter. "I…I'm trying not to think badly of Rosie. I don't want to think badly of her, you've got to believe that. Father said she probably thought that she was doing her best for Jacob but it's just…so much less than he could have had if I'd found out about him sooner. If Rosie hadn't died then it may have been all he'd have ever known and that's just…wrong. Jo, I didn't recognise a single piece of furniture in that building and yet not one piece of it was actually new. The whole place was furnished at least second, if not third, fourth or fifth hand and that bothers me. I'm also troubled by the thought that I sound like a spoilt little rich kid because I'm so upset that my only son has spent his whole life sleeping in a badly-worn hand-me-down cot. Well never again. I don't want anything from in there other than the paperwork, photo albums and books. Everything else can be got rid of, in the simplest way possible. If some charity wants to come and take the furniture then let them. If they don't want it then a house clearance company will have to be got in. Whatever happens Jacob and I will not be setting foot in that apartment ever again."

Joel nodded his understanding. Jeff had warned him that John had been running a short emotional fuse since arriving in Tasmania and he had been expecting some sort of emotional outburst at some point while he was watching over the sensitive blonde genius. "I'll sort it," he promised. "Paperwork, books, albums. You're sure that's all you want?"

John, still staring at his knees, nodded. "Yes," he whispered. "Just the paper…stuff. Can you take me back to the hotel, please. I need to get my head screwed on properly before I go and visit Jacob or I'll upset him."

Joel nodded. "Sure," he replied. "Slide yourself over." He slipped out of the car, ran around the other side and clambered into the driver's seat before driving away from the apartment.


	42. Chapter 42

~#~ (Chapter 42)

Joel took John back to the hotel and stayed with him until John decided he had calmed down enough to visit Jacob. Both men then left the hotel in their own rental cars, John heading to the hospital and Joel to the nearest stationers where he purchased brown tape, marker pens, a large number of cardboard archive boxes and several rolls of black refuse sacks. He then headed back up the highway to Rosie's apartment.

Once there Joel set about sorting the paperwork from the dresser into some semblance of order and packed it securely into two of the archive boxes. He marked them as 'dresser' and then packed the books from the table into another two boxes which he labelled 'books/table'. He piled the four boxes by the main door of the apartment, did a cursory check of the kitchenette and then moved on to tackle the bedroom.

Joel discovered several old photo albums among the books on the shelf in the bedroom and made sure they were on top of the box when he sealed it. He marked the box with a small star so that he'd know where the albums were as he knew that John would want to look at them separately from Rosie's other random books and paperwork.

~#~

Once the shelf was empty, Joel turned his attentions to the dressing table. Feeling a little ill at ease he pulled open the drawers and looked for any personal items that may have had any special meaning to Rosie. Even though John had specified 'paperwork, books and albums', Joel realised that the younger man would come to appreciate some of the smaller items from Rosie's life once the shock of her sudden death fully wore off. In one of the drawers he found a child's trinket box which he carefully removed and placed into a new archive box. Alongside the trinket box he added a small gilt-framed photograph of Jacob and a tissue box within which he had carefully wrapped a delicate bottle of floral-scented perfume. It was obvious from its position on the table that the scent had been a favourite of Rosie's and Joel had clearly seen John's reaction to the fragrance when they had entered the room earlier that day. John had recognised the scent, of that Joel was certain.

Further searching of the dressing table turned up nothing more helpful than make-up, underwear and assorted sanitary products and Joel was becoming frustrated. He had helped the police to search dwellings several times during the early part of his career and he knew that usually, somewhere in each house, there was a stash of private and personal items which had been hidden away from the prying eyes of the outside world. Joel was looking for Rosie's keepsake box and he wasn't going to leave until he'd found it.

Leaving the dressing table, Joel moved across the room. Crouching on his hands and knees he pulled the bedcovers out of the way and looked at the floor beneath. Here he discovered the whereabouts of most of Jacob's toys. Packed away in wheeled boxes, the little boy's toys had been stored, out of sight, beneath the bed. Joel considered the toys in the same way that John had cast an appraising eye over the furniture earlier that day. He came to the same conclusion as John had with the furniture too, that virtually everything in the wheeled boxes was well used and probably had been since well before Jacob had even been born. John hadn't reacted well to the worn furniture in the apartment so there was no way he would react well to knowing about the second or third hand toys.

Joel stopped and shook his head. For all their worldly wealth, the Tracy boys were usually surprisingly well grounded. They could afford the best of anything that money could buy and yet never flaunted their wealth by driving flashy cars or sporting tasteless over-the-top jewellery. John's negative reaction to Rosie's old, worn furniture had surprised Joel as much as it had obviously shocked John and the lawyer suddenly realised that that John was feeling an extreme amount of guilt at not being able to provide for his son when he was tiny. John would, no doubt, spend a long time and a lot of money overcompensating for not being there for the first six months of Jacob's life and Joel smiled as he thought this. Jacob would never want for anything material item during his lifetime. Anything and everything that the boy needed to flourish and grow would be provided for him with no expense spared. Joel's smile dropped slightly. The boy would have everything he ever needed…apart from the loving arms of his mother.

Joel sighed and pulled the boxes from beneath the bed. He stacked them under the window in preparation for donating them to a children's charity. When he found Jacob's clothes he would add them to the pile and thought he would ask whether they wanted the cot and the high chair which he'd noticed in the kitchenette.

Joel continued searching for the keepsake box and finally met with success. He had to close the door in order to gain access to the underside of the head of the bed and when he leant down and peered beneath it he discovered a sturdy-looking metal tin with a handle on each end. He hooked his fingers through one handle, pulled the tin out from beneath the bed and carefully placed it down on the covers. One by one he flicked through he keys on Rosie's keyring until he found a tiny silver padlock key which fitted in the lock on the front of the box. He then slowly opened the lid and looked inside.

~#~

Joel exhaled loudly as the lid of the box fell back to reveal neatly bundled paperwork, photos, three beautifully bound hardback books and assorted other small items which had obviously been significant to Rosie. Upon further investigation the books proved to be John's three published works and when Joel looked inside the cover of one he found that it had been signed, 'To the most beautiful star of all. All my love, John.' The lawyer didn't want to intrude further than he already had so left the remaining two books alone. As he flicked through the tin Joel found letters, diaries and numerous photographs. Some of the pictures were of John with Rosie and some were ones that Rosie herself had obviously taken of John during their time together. One thing they all had in common was that they all showed the two young lovers looking happy and carefree.

Joel decided that he'd seen enough. The tin box was what he'd been looking for and other than the contents of the archive boxes just about everything else in the apartment was now immaterial. Joel relocked the box, carried it out of the room and placed it reverently beside the archive boxes by the door. He then returned to the bedroom to retrieve the final box of bits and pieces.

As he turned to leave the room Joel realised that there was a pair of wheeled boxes beneath the cot that he hadn't looked at. These turned out to contain Jacob's clothes so the lawyer pulled them free of the cot and added them to the stack of toy boxes by the window. Inside the cot itself sat a small, yellow, plush-covered star with a bright orange smiley face. Joel picked it up and smiled. The star seemed to be the only toy that had been kept out from under the bed so Joel presumed that it was Jacob's favourite. It looked like it had probably been bought when Jacob was born and even though it showed signs that it had been chewed on at some point, most of the plush looked as good as new. Joel added the toy to the archive box, taped the lid closed and then carried the box from the room.


	43. Chapter 43

~#~ (Chapter 43)

Jeff had taken his room key with him when he'd left but had given Joel the spare keycards to both his and John's rooms. By the time John returned from the hospital, Joel had the boxes from Rosie's apartment stored away in the corner of Jeff's hotel room. Since John had no reason to go into Jeff's room he remained oblivious to what Joel had done until the lawyer told him during dinner. Joel explained that he'd gone back to the apartment and packed up everything that he thought John might want and that he had also gone through the tiny kitchen area and disposed of anything perishable.

John nodded his approval, thanked Joel for going back to the apartment and apologised profusely for running out on him earlier that day. Joel said that he understood and offered to go in again if there was anything else that John thought he or Jacob might need in the future.

~#~

After dinner Joel accompanied John back his hotel room and quietly followed when John went through into Jeff's room to take a look at the boxes. The six archive boxes sat in pairs, one on top of the other, along the wall beside Jeff's wardrobe and the locked tin sat on top. John sat on the edge of Jeff's bed and waited for Joel to speak.

"Paperwork," Joel said, pointing at the first pair of boxes. "…and books," he said, motioning to the boxes containing the contents of Rosie's table. "There are a couple more photo albums in this one," he pointed to the box that he'd starred and sighed. "The last box and the tin have some…um…personal items in them that I thought you might appreciate once you're home."

John raised his eyebrows at this but Joel raised a finger before he could speak. "I know, I know, 'paperwork, books and albums' but believe me, at some point in the future, when you look back at the happy times that you spent with Rosie, you'll be glad to have the contents of that box. You don't need to open it now, just…keep it safe."

John nodded slowly as he absorbed Joel's words. He knew that there were several boxes of his mother's things in one of the storage rooms below the villa on Tracy Island. On occasion, usually around the anniversary of Lucille Tracy's death, Jeff would disappear into this room and remain there for several hours. He would eventually reappear in a solemn, sombre mood and retreat to his room until one of the boys, usually Scott, had to go and retrieve him.

John sighed. "I…I don't know what to say," he admitted. "Thank you just doesn't seem enough. I'm sure that at some point I'll be able to look back at the past few years and smile, it's just…at the moment I can't really get past the fact that Rosie's…um…gone."

Joel rested a hand on John's shoulder and gave a gentle squeeze. "It may seem like something that everyone says but it's true that the feeling won't last forever," he explained. "I can tell you that the pain will never disappear completely but that it will eventually fade into something more manageable…something that you'll carry with you for the rest of your life but that's no longer painful enough to cripple you as you go about your day. It will get better, John. I promise it will."

John let out a deep sigh and nodded. "I'll never forget how Dad was, just after Mama had died. He was virtually non-functional for days at a time, even while Virgil was still in the hospital and I really don't know what we'd've done if Grandma hadn't been there at the time. The pain was just too raw for him to handle, I guess but he pulled it together eventually, with an awful lot of help."

"That's right," Joel said softly. "And once he started to pull himself together he realised that even though losing Lucille was the worst thing to have happened in his life, he still had the five of you to live for. He had five little people depending on him…and his stability. You five boys were who really made Jeff turn himself around and pull out of the depression that he had begun to sink into. If it hadn't been for you boys I think we'd've probably lost Jeff not all that long after we lost Lucille."

From his spot on the bed John looked up at Joel. "So what are you saying? That I should concentrate all my efforts on Jacob for now and not mull over what's passed by? I assure you that I am. That little boy is the most important person in my life at the moment and, God willing, he'll remain that way until long after I'm dead and gone, be that next week, next month or sixty or seventy years from now."

Joel shrugged. "What I'm saying is that if you're throwing all your energies towards that little boy then it's not going to do either of you any harm. You've got something and someone to live for and he's got the love and attention of a devoted father. Sure, he's only got one parent but so did you boys and you turned out alright and that was without the care and support of four uncles, a great grandmother and a whole heap of other people living on their own tropical island."

John chuckled. "He's going to be so spoilt by everyone, isn't he. Dad loves him already and Scott wanted to see him on the vid-phone when I called…" John paused and looked at his watch. "Oh God, I never phoned this afternoon. It'll have to wait until later now. If I try at about midnight that'll make it about 7am there so Dad and Scott will probably be about. Virgil and Alan will be nowhere to be seen and Gordon will be in the pool so he'll probably think I'm deliberately trying to avoid him by calling when he's not around. I'd have really loved to speak to Grandma but I doubt she'll be up and about that early."

"I'm sure you'll be able to speak to her soon enough," Joel chuckled. "And when you do she'll be full of it, you mark my words. Ruthie's at her best when she's got a babe in her arms, always has been, always will be. If your grandmother could fly I bet you she'd have had Tracy One out of it's hangar and on it's way here within minutes of finding out about Jacob. Nothing Jeff, Scott or anyone else could have done would have stopped her from getting to him."

John broke into a huge smile at the thought of his diminutive little grandmother commandeering Tracy One for the flight over to Hobart. "I think you're probably right, Uncle Jo," he laughed. "Maybe I need to see if I can use one of the vid-phones in the hospital so everyone at home can meet Jacob properly. I know Scott said they've all seen pictures but it's not the same as actually being able to see him and hear him like you can on the vid-phones."

"No, it's not," Joel agreed. "…and I think it'd be a great idea to try and call from the hospital. From what Jeff's said the staff there are more than willing to help out in any way they can and if you're not allowed to take Jacob out then the only way for everyone to meet him is via the vid-phone. I'm sure something can be arranged, bearing in mind how far away the rest of the family is and how long it's likely to be before the pair of you can finally go home. Why don't you suggest it to Jeff when you call him later and find out when everyone's likely to be about."

John nodded. "I will," he said with a chuckle. "…and then I'll just have to hope that the hospital agree!"


	44. Chapter 44

~#~ (Chapter 44)

John had several hours to waste between Joel leaving him and midnight, when he was going to call Jeff. He decided to pass the time by looking through the least worrisome-looking of Rosie's boxes. He sat on the floor between Jeff's bed and the boxes and pulled the two boxes marked as 'books/table' towards himself. He carefully sliced through the tape holding the lids down, opened the boxes and arranged their contents into small piles on the carpet.

Once the boxes were empty John pushed them off to one side and began sorting through the books. He found four library books among those owned by Rosie and reached behind himself so he could put them on Jeff's bed. Someone would have to return them to their rightful home and explain why they were late.

John found himself smiling sadly when he discovered several books that were duplicates of ones he had on the shelf in his room on Tracy Island. He placed these back in one of the boxes and then added a trio of romantic novels, two well-used cookbooks and a book entitled 'An introduction to breast feeding' that looked like it had never been opened.

Any books that John had already read went straight in the box along with anything that didn't interest him and in the end the books on the floor had been filtered down until only half a dozen remained. These were the ones that John had decided to keep, the others, which now took up a box and a half would be donated to charity.

John looked at his watch and decided that he would tackle the last box of books. This was the one which Joel had marked with a star and which John knew also contained photo albums. Joel had put the albums at the top of the box so it was a simple job for John to lift them out and place them out of reach on Jeff's bed. He would look at the pictures later but for now he wanted to finish the task he'd set himself, the sorting of Rosie's books.

The books from the bedroom were a more eclectic mix than those from the sitting room. There was a set of six science fantasy novels written by an author that John remembered Alan speaking highly of. He didn't recognise the name of the books as any that Alan had so added them to the pile of six books that he was going to take home.

Also in the box was a pair of books that dealt with pregnancy and childbirth. John had missed that part of Jacob's life but he knew the mechanics behind it and decided that he wasn't going to dwell on any of that for fear it would upset him again. He added the books to the charity box without opening them.

By the time he finished going through the starred box the charity boxes were full. John piled them under the window and used the now-empty starred box to pack away the books that he wanted to take back to the island. He checked the time and added the untouched photo albums to the top of the box before replacing the lid.

~#~

John moved back through to his own room and decided to take a shower before calling Jeff. He sat on the edge of his bed and had begun to unbutton his shirt when his stomach rumbled and made him chuckle. "You've been fed," he said and patted his stomach. "So behave."

He finished fighting with the buttons on his shirt and had just slipped his arms from the sleeves when his stomach let off another grumble which made him stop and think. He and Joel had started dinner a little early than usual that evening because they had arrived at the restaurant just after 7pm and ordered almost immediately. Joel had left John to decide how much he wanted and of what. The young man suddenly realised that he hadn't eaten as much as he had on previous nights because Jeff hadn't been there to virtually force food into him. "Midnight snack," he told the room. "That's what we need. Something with chicken I think. OK, here's the plan. Room service, shower, phone. Huh, so much for calling in at seven o'clock. At this rate Gordy'll be out of the pool before I get round to calling. Hmmm."

John stopped and leapt to his feet, looking sheepishly around the room to assure himself there was no-one else around. Talking to himself was a habit that he'd unfortunately picked up due to the many hours he spent alone on Thunderbird 5. Generally he managed to stop himself whenever he was back on earth but occasionally, like when he was tired, he found himself slipping. He shook his head and pulled the room service menu from its holder by the door. He ordered the food and asked for it not to arrive for at least half an hour so he could shower before eating.

The food arrived just as John finished getting changed into the soft-cotton T-shirt and sweatpants that he'd be sleeping in. He looked between the desk and the bed and he decided, for once, to forgo all attempts at formality. He curled up on the bed with his plate of food and made his call through to the island.

~#~

John's uncharacteristically relaxed phone call was answered by Gordon who had been wandering back through the villa after his morning swim.

"Oh, John, hi," he called as he flicked the button to accept the incoming call. "Hang on a minute, let me just…" John was treated to a view of Gordon's badly scarred back as the wet-from-the-pool red-head removed the towel from around his neck and spread it over Jeff's office chair so he could sit down.

"There we go," Gordon announced and he perched on the front of the chair and leant towards the desk. "Just keep reminding me not to lean back," he said with a smile. "Dad will kick my ass if I get the chair wet again."

John chuckled. "It's good to see you, Gordy," he said and picked a chicken wing off his plate before sniffing it and humming appreciatively. "How's everything back on the island?" he asked and then popped part of the wing in his mouth, pulled off a piece of meat and sighed. "God, these are almost as good as Kyrano's."

"That good?" Gordon asked, with a pained expression on his face. "That's so not fair, big bro. I haven't eaten yet and it'll be another half an hour before there's anything hot to eat around here."

A devilish grin shot across John's face as he picked up a perfectly cut potato wedge and held it up to the phone before popping it in his mouth and chewing theatrically. "Mmm," he sighed. "Equally as good as the chicken. Gordy, Gordy, Gordy, you really don't know what you're missing."

Gordon groaned. "And you, John Tracy, are a cruel, cruel man. That all looks so good I can just about taste it."

"Mm, mm, mm," John waved a piece of wing at the phone this time. "Let's just call it payback for all the times I've been up on Five and you've just _had_ to call me in the middle of a meal." Gordon put on a mock pout and crossed his arms against his chest before bursting into laughter and dropping them back onto his knees.

"So, how's things?" John asked again. "Scott giving you stick 'cos you're getting to play in that silver monstrosity of his and he's not?"

Gordon shook his head. "Surprisingly not," he replied. "Hey, did Dad tell you that he had me escort him home? When he left you, I mean?" John shook his head so Gordon continued. "Parker's been having some trouble with the car so I'd been to take Brains to Lady P's and I got back at just about the same time as Dad. Dad asked and Scott said there was no-one about so Dad said I could fly out and get him and I did. Pretty cool, huh?"

John couldn't help but feel that there was more to the story than Gordon, in his haste to tell it, had said. Not wanting to disrupt his brother's obviously good mood he saluted him with a potato wedge and agreed that it was "Cool." He then stuck the wedge in his mouth so he had a reason for not expounding on the comment.

Gordon watched him eat for a moment and then frowned. "Johnny? Are you in bed?" he asked. "It's twenty to eight in the morning and you're eating chicken and wedges in bed. That's just wrong."

"There's nothing wrong about it at all," John argued. "I'm hungry, so I'm eating and it's not twenty to eight in the morning, it's twenty to one in the morning…oh, and it's tomorrow."

Gordon shook his head. This was a complete change from the quiet, stunned John that Jeff had taken off the island. "You seem to be doing…um…OK. How are things there? How's Jacob?"

John looked disappointedly at the plate which now held nothing but bits of chicken bone. He sighed and put it on the bedside table before turning back to Gordon with a smile. "Oh Gordy, you're going to love him. He's such a happy little thing…well, as long as the nurses aren't sticking him with needles, he is. When they do that he turns into a little 'angry Alan' so it's lucky they don't need to stick him all that often. Anyway, Uncle Jo and I were talking about the fact that Grandma in particular will be getting pretty anxious to see Jacob and that's partly why I called. I want to see if the hospital will let me use the vid-phone in one if their offices so I can introduce him to you all properly. It's going to be a while before we can come home and I'd really like Jacob to meet his family."

"Do you think they'll let you?" Gordon asked. "Mind you, if they don't then I'm sure there must be a public phone or two somewhere around the hospital grounds, it'd just limit what could be said and to whom."

John nodded. "That's true," he agreed. "I hadn't thought of that. I'll try the office idea first. Everyone's been very helpful so far so I'm keeping my fingers crossed."


	45. Chapter 45

~#~ (Chapter 45)

"So, apart from playing escort to Dad, what else has been happening?" John asked. "Where is he, by the way? Or Scott, or anyone else for that matter? It seems suspiciously quiet there today. Especially for nearly eight o'clock. And before you start, don't try and say it's because I'm not there because I never am and it's never that quiet."

Gordon tried hard to look offended but failed miserably. "Who said I was going to say that?" he asked. "…and the reason it's quiet is quite simple. It's because there's virtually no-one here. You know where Alan is and Virgil's in the same place he is at this time every morning…in bed. Scott and Tin-Tin flew to Penelope's for dinner yesterday and stayed overnight. Dad figured that it'd give Scott a bit of a break and said that if he was needed then it would be just as easy for him to fly out from there as it is from here. He and Tin-Tin will be coming back with Brains in a couple of hours and then I _think_ Brains is going to be swapping places with Alan at some point during this afternoon. Oh yeah, Dad says he's got a job for Alan to do but he can't decide if Alan's going to love it or hate it. I have no clue what that means but I think I'm going to be keeping well out of the way 'cos if he hates it then he's going to be intolerable."

John smirked. "You're a wuss," he said with a chuckle. "So, you've told me where everyone under the age of fifty is. I know Grandma won't be up yet and that Kyrano will be in the kitchen but I still don't know about Dad. He and Scott are always up at the crack of dawn but he's not at his desk so where is he?"

"Truthfully?" Gordon asked.

John nodded. "Truthfully," he replied.

"Truthfully, I have no idea," Gordon admitted. "He spent most of yesterday afternoon shut up in his office sorting I-don't-know-what out. Grandma dragged him out for dinner but he didn't look too happy and went back to whatever he was doing straight after dessert. All I know is that it must have been something to do with either you or Penny 'cos he was doing a lot of grumbling about time differences. Apparently he'd started doing, whatever he was doing via e-mail yesterday morning so people would have messages waiting for them when they started work but he had to wait until the afternoon before he could reach them by phone. I could hear him talking to someone when I went to bed and there was no noise from his room when I past it this morning so I'd guess he was still asleep."

John thought about what Gordon had said and realised that Jeff had probably been making funeral arrangements. His good mood slipped a little. "Oh," he said quietly. "I think I can guess what that was. Dad said he'd make some arrangements for me, when we were talking the other night. He never said when or how he was going to do it, just that he would."

John fell silent and Gordon, aware that he had inadvertently upset John in some way, stayed quiet as well.

Neither brother knew what to say to each other but neither wanted to be the one to end the call and the pair sat in silence until Jeff solved their quandary by walking into the room. Gordon hadn't noticed his approach and startled badly before letting his breath out in a loud, embarrassed sigh. He then smiled, first at his father and then at John. "Dad," he said. "I thought you were still in bed."

"I was," Jeff replied. "But I'm up now. What are you doing in here?"

Gordon turned the screen of the phone around so that Jeff could see John. "Just talking," he replied and his eyes met John's. "…and then just sitting...oh, and now talking again."

John shook his head and grinned at the baffled expression on Jeff's face. "Hi Dad," he said. "You OK?"

Jeff rested his arms on the edge of the desk as he looked into the vid-phone. "I'm fine," he replied. "I have to say I was a little surprised when I didn't hear from you last night though. Did you get caught up in something yesterday?"

"Hang on, Dad," Gordon said suddenly. "Let me get out of the way. I need to go and get dressed before breakfast so you can have the chair. I'll speak to you later John, OK?"

John nodded. "OK Gordy, take care."

Gordon got up and pulled the towel off the chair so Jeff could sit down. "See you at breakfast, Dad."

Jeff waved him off. "I'll see you shortly, son," he said and then turned to John. "So, what happened yesterday?" he asked.

"Er, well, we started off by going to the apartment," John replied. "Did Scott tell you that all the paperwork had been sorted and that I'd paid three months rent and signed for the keys?"

Jeff nodded. "Mostly," he said. "He also told me you were thinking about taking Joel with you to take a look. I suppose it made sense to go in sooner rather than later. How did it go?"

"I…I…" John looked away from the screen and worried his bottom lip with his teeth before turning back to Jeff. "Look, can you check that Gordy's definitely gone?"

Jeff frowned and then stood up and moved over to check outside the door. Gordon was nowhere to be seen so he returned to the chair. "He's gone, John. There's no-one around. Now do you want to try again?" Jeff had worked out from John's reaction that the visit to Rosie's apartment hadn't gone well but he wasn't sure in what way it had gone awry.

John took a deep breath. "It wasn't good, Dad," he admitted. "The apartment building's old and rather rundown. It's right by the Polytechnic and when we tried to go inside we were confronted by two…well I don't know if they were students but they were that sort of age. They met us at the door and were rather…um… hostile. When we got inside we looked around and found where Rosie kept all her paperwork. I found the album that the police took the photos from and we went through the apartment to try and find any others. Father, everything in the apartment was old and worn and when we got to the bedroom I…I…um…kinda freaked out about it. I couldn't stay in there and I'm sorry, Dad, you need to know that I've told Uncle Jo that I don't want to go back." John's speech petered out and he sat quietly and waited for Jeff's reaction.

Jeff surprised his son by shrugging. "Fair enough," he said quietly. "If you don't want to go back in, then don't. I said before that we could get someone in to clear it if you wanted so we'll just do that. You'll need to think, though, if there's anything you want to save because you'll need to tell them that before they start."

While Jeff had been talking, John had lowered his gaze and was staring at his knees. Jeff looked at John's defeated stance and sighed. It was obvious that his son had been expecting him to disapprove of his inability to cope with the apartment even though he knew Jeff would support him every step of the way. "John," he said quietly. "John, look at me."

John slowly raised his eyes, pushed his floppy blonde hair off his face with one hand and looked directly into the vid-phone. Jeff was pleased to see that his eyes were dry. "I'm proud of the way you're handling all this," he told John. "Everything that's happened in the past week is about as far removed from your normal, ordered life as it's possible to get and you effectively lost a partner and gained a son all in the space of a few days. Add to that the fact that you're now basically stuck in an unknown country, away from your family, friends and everything that you know and love. Well, let's just say, if you weren't upset then I'd be extremely worried. You went to the apartment, it upset you and you left. It's no big deal, John. Really. If there's anything that needs doing that you feel you can't do then just say so. I won't think any less of you for it…and neither will Joel, before you start to fret. OK?"

John blinked slowly and nodded. "OK," he replied quietly.

"That's all I can ask for." Jeff stretched his arms across the desk. "So, what did you do when you left the apartment? Go back to the hospital?"

John nodded. "Eventually," he replied. "I got Uncle Jo to take me back to the hotel so I could calm down a bit first. I didn't think it'd do Jacob any good if I went in there all flustered."

Jeff smiled. "Good thinking," he agreed. "The five of you were always good at picking up on stresses and emotions and I'd still swear that Scott was born with a 'Daddy's going into space' sensor. Whether he picked something up from your mother or me, I just don't know but he'd be a horror for days before every flight and would pitch a complete fit each time it came time for me to finally leave. God, I hadn't thought about that for ages. It took years before he got out of the habit."

"I know, Dad," John told him with a chuckle. "I was there for some of it, remember? Anyway, once I'd calmed down I went to the hospital. I didn't know it at the time but Uncle Jo went back to the apartment and boxed up everything we'd spoken about taking. You don't need to worry about me wanting anything else from the apartment because he brought it all here…all of Rosie's paperwork and books and stuff. He packed it all up without asking and…well, dumped it in your room. I sorted out the books this evening, into ones I want and ones I don't and I've got all sorts of photographs to look through at some point. There are two boxes of paperwork left to look at and Joel got a box and a tin of…um…he said they were personal items that I'd appreciate in the future." John stopped and looked a little lost. He shook his head gently and then a thought came to him. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot, the reason I forgot to call…Kathy let me give Jacob a bath. No, actually that's not true...she _made_ me give him a bath. You know, she made out like it was my punishment for letting him get so moussey in the first place."

Jeff held out a hand and stopped him. "Moussey?" he queried. "Is that even a word?"

"It is if your name's Kathy," John replied. "…and I quote…" He adopted a falsetto voice and put on an accent that Jeff had to admit was very much like Kathy's. "'Mr Tracy, just what have you been doing to that poor child? You're supposed to feed him his pudding, not paint him with it. I won't accept him back in that moussey state so you're just going to have to bathe him. Don't you worry Jacob, my little sweetie, that messy Daddy of yours is going to give you a lovely bath you'll be our blue eyed little angel again soon." John coughed loudly. "God, I can't keep that up for long," he said with a laugh. "You get the idea, anyway? Oh, and it was chocolate mousse, just so you know."

Jeff put a finger across his mouth and held in the laugh that was trying to escape. "Hmmm," he murmured. "Thank you, I can picture that clearly! I don't suppose Kathy got a picture?"

"Not as far as I know," John replied. "…and it's just as well if you'd have seen the state of me. It wasn't just Jacob that was covered in it. Honestly, Father, I had no clue that one small pot of chocolate mousse could spread so far."

Jeff chuckled and then the laugh he'd been holding back finally broke though his defences. John joined him in his laughter and then, when the pair had calmed down again, he remembered the other point to his call. "Oh, I was telling Gordy earlier about an idea that Uncle Jo and I had," he told Jeff. "He said that he thought Alan would be back soon, was he right?"

Jeff nodded. "Yes, that's right. I haven't spoken to Brains myself but Scott's told him about Jacob and explained that we had to swap yourself and Alan over. Apparently there are some calibrations that he wants to get done on Five so he jumped at the chance to go and spend some time up there. He'll be going up after lunch and Alan should be back later on this afternoon. Why? And what's this idea that you and Joel have cooked up."

John explained about wanting to call the island from the hospital so that everyone could meet Jacob properly. Jeff wholeheartedly agreed with the idea and suggested that John try and arrange the call for his 'usual time' of 9pm because, barring emergencies, everyone would be back and settled by then. John agreed with the time because it would make the call sit nicely between lunch and Jacob's afternoon nap.

Gordon stuck his head through the door at that moment and announced that breakfast was ready. He stayed with Jeff while he finished the call with John and got a cheery "See you later" in just as the connection closed.

Jeff shook his head and followed Gordon out of the room. He couldn't wait for this evening…and the rest of the family's reactions to their newest member.


	46. Chapter 46

~#~ (Chapter 46)

Despite not going to sleep until well after one o'clock, John was awake by 5.30. He rolled over and groaned when he caught sight of the time but quickly realised that he wasn't going to get any more sleep so got up, dressed and went for a run. When he got back he had a quick shower and then knocked on Joel's door so the pair could have breakfast together.

Joel accompanied John to the hospital when he went and was finally introduced to Jacob after having heard so much about him over the past few days. The little boy took to the lawyer in the same laid-back manner that he accepted everybody who came to see him and John smiled broadly when he stepped back into the nursery after speaking with Carly Davidson, the hospital curator, about using the vid-phone. Joel had played quietly with Jacob for a while before deciding to show him the sights out of the window. He'd held Jacob securely against his chest and had pointed out, and then chatted about, the various landmarks that he could see. He remained at the window until Jacob had fallen asleep in his arms and then gently adjusted his grip on the little boy so that he was lying in a comfortable position across his chest. Once Jacob was settled Joel perched himself on the cupboard by the window and watched the world going by below him.

This was how John found the pair of them when he re-entered the room. "Hey," he whispered to Joel. "Everything OK in here?"

Joel looked down at the sleeping child in his arms and smiled. "Yeah," he replied. "It seems that the sights of Hobart were too much for a certain someone to cope with. So, are you going to tell me how you got on? Are you all set for Operation Tracy-Talk?"

John nodded. "Certainly am," he replied with a smile. "Tracy-Talk is a go…so to speak. Jo, I know Dad said he'd had words with Miss…Mrs…er…Ms Davidson but I'd love to know exactly what was said because she was being almost too helpful. She said that I can use the vid-phone in her office as often as I like and not to worry if I wanted to use it but couldn't find her, just to go on in and make my calls. It…it was a bit weird, to be honest."

Joel snorted and then quickly shushed Jacob when the little boy startled in his sleep. Jeff had told Joel exactly what had been said in the curator's office so that he could relay the information to Alex prior to the hospital ringing him. Once he was certain that Jacob was properly asleep again he continued, "Well, let's just say that Ms Davidson found out who your father is and tried to talk money with him at an inopportune moment."

"Ooh," John said, wincing as he spoke. "I can't imagine that went down well. Dad hates anyone mentioning the 'Rich and Powerful Jefferson Tracy' tag and money in the same sentence. He's always said that the whole celebrity circus taints people's perceptions and the 'Rich' tag just makes them greedy. I can't say I blame him for keeping out of public view as much as he does. So, do you know what happened between the two of them?"

Joel shrugged carefully so as not to disturb Jacob again. "Oh yes, I most certainly do. Ms Davidson put herself squarely on the wrong side of Jeff from the moment she called him into her office. The daft mare only told him that she'd been told who he was and then immediately made some comment about the ever-mounting cost of Jacob's care. She ended up feeling the sharp side of his tongue, I can tell you. Jeff was still…er…miffed when he was telling me about it. Strangely enough though he told me that a little birdie had taken him to one side after Ms Davidson had confronted him and that said little bird had explained that Ms Davidson is currently under pressure from the hospital's financial board over a new oncology wing that's in the pipeline. I don't know how she did it but whatever she said pulled Jeff up short and made him think. There's not many women can do that to your father, especially when he's already…um…upset."

John chuckled quietly as Jo carefully avoided any bad language even though Jacob was still fast asleep. "There's not many men around that could do it either, Uncle Jo. I have a feeling that little birdie must have been Jayne. She looked after us the first day we arrived, when...well…tensions were high and neither me nor Father were at our best. She basically threw him out of the room and told him in no uncertain terms that he wasn't allowed back for at least an hour so she could do the swab for my paternity test in peace. It was Jayne who told us that Jacob was actually mine and she made the arrangements for us to come up here and see him for the first time. You should have seen her facing off against Father, Jo. She was phenomenal."

Joel nodded. "She sure sounds impressive," he agreed with a laugh. "So, what's the plan of action for the rest of the day?"

John told Joel that he was torn between staying with Jacob and going shopping to buy the little boy some clothes of his own. He had discovered that the ones that Jacob was currently wearing were from the hospital's emergency stores and felt guilty that Jacob was using them when he didn't need to. Joel solved his dilemma by offering to keep Jacob company while John went to the shops and the young man went away happy knowing that his son would be kept amused for the rest of the morning until he got back.

~#~

When John returned, several hours later, he was carrying a large bag and had a sheepish expression on his face.

"Johnny?" Joel questioned. He was sitting on the floor with Jacob supported between his knees and he looked up at John as he spoke. "If either Gordon or Alan was sporting that expression then I'd assume they'd been up to mischief. Seeing it on your face though, is just disconcerting. Whatever have you been up to?"

John blushed. "You know what I've been doing," he said and jiggled the bag he was carrying to make his point. "I've been shopping for Jacob." He dropped the bag onto the floor and then sat down cross-legged beside it, directly in front of Jacob and Joel.

"And?" Joel prompted. "Or should that be 'but'?"

John ignored the question and held his hands out towards Jacob and clapped them gently. "Hey, look at you, all big and sitting up," he said quietly. "You wanna come and see what I've got for you?"

Joel smiled and shook his head before lifting Jacob to his feet and making him 'walk' into John's arms. John laughed and cuddled the boy close before releasing him so he could see Jacob's face when he spoke to him. "Hello, little one. I'm sorry I had to leave you this morning but I wanted to make sure you had something nice to wear when we speak to everyone later. I'm back now and I promise I'm not going anywhere until bedtime. OK?"

Jacob looked up at John, gave him a beaming smile and then squealed loudly.

John laughed. "Same to you too," he replied and then lifted Jacob up and turned him round so the little boy was sat across one of his thighs. Once Jacob was settled John reached over to the bag which sat beside him. "Now, shall we see what we've got in here?" he asked and then reached inside the bag to pull out a peach-coloured, cuddly, knitted bear. He held it in front of Jacob and wiggled it so that its arms wobbled. Jacob squealed again and reached for the bear, eventually managing to grab it and drag it towards himself so he could cram one of its ears into his mouth.

"I think he likes it," Joel laughed from his spot opposite John. "Is it safe to assume that you bought more than just clothes this morning?"

John smiled and nodded. "Yes, that would be a safe assumption. I think I may have got a little…um…carried away. I kind of didn't realise there would be so much to choose from. I started out well, with the clothes I mean but then I found the bear and it all sort of went downhill from there. I got the bear and then I spotted a furry yellow submarine and I just had to buy that as well and…well, you get the idea. Anyway, I don't think there's much chance that anyone at home's going to be needing to buy Jacob anything to cuddle nor anything to wear until he grows out of everything I've bought him today."

Joel laughed and leaned over to clap John on the shoulder. "Well, I don't think anyone will be too worried about you spending your money on your son, it's not like you were given the opportunity to do it before. I take it you've left some bags in the car?"

The twinkle in John's eyes dulled slightly at Joel's casual reminder that John had missed the earliest months of Jacob's life. After his discussion with Joel the previous day he had decided to focus on the future and shook his head to clear the dark thoughts before they could dampen his good mood. "No," he replied. "I dropped them back at the hotel, I thought it was safer than leaving them in the car. I'm going to start bringing things in from the hotel and swapping them between there to here. That way, once Jacob is finally released, there will be things in the hotel that he can recognise."

"Sounds like you've thought it all through," Joel said gently. "I'd like to make a suggestion. How about, when you eventually get to go home, you give the hospital any of the clothes that are borderline too small? That way there will be more clothes available for the next little waif that comes through here."

John nodded. "I like that idea, Uncle Jo. I like that idea a lot. They've been so good to us in here that I feel we should be giving something back to them. A few clothes that no longer fit wouldn't be enough though. I'll have to talk to Dad about what we could do to thank them in some way."

It was Joel's turn to nod. "I don't think you'll have any arguments from Jeff over that one and between the two of you I'm sure you can come up with something appropriate. Now, shall we see if we can break this little guy out of here so we can go and get some food? He doesn't have to eat in here all the time, does he?"

John shook his head. "No, he's fine to go downstairs, just as long as we let someone know what and how much he's eaten when we come back. I'll warn you though, he's a super-messy eater."

"He's a boy," Joel laughed. "They're built to be messy." He clambered to his feet and reached down to pluck Jacob, who was still chewing on the bear, off John's leg. Once he had the little boy settled on his hip he turned back to John. "You OK?" he asked, when it became obvious that the younger man was struggling to get up.

"Dead leg," John grunted. "I guess that wasn't the best position to be sitting in."

Joel reached down and hauled John off the floor. "Hmm, that must be it," he agreed. "Either that or you're just getting old. Come on you, let's go eat."


	47. Chapter 47

~#~ (Chapter 47)

After lunch John, Joel and Jacob returned to the nursery. John gave Jacob a quick bath and with a bit of help from Kathy, managed to wash and dry the little boy's hair without too much upset.

Once Jacob was dry John handed him to Joel while he went to change his own clothes in readiness for making the vid-phone call to Tracy Island. He chuckled when he walked back into Jacob's room and found that Joel had tied a muslin square around Jacob's neck to act as an impromptu bib.

"The dribble monster seems determined to wreck his clothes before meeting everybody," Joel explained. "And the bear seems to be soaking a lot of it up as well. You chose well, Johnny, Jacob seems very attached to it already. I think you may need to go and get a twin for it though, that way he can have one while the other's being washed…oh, and you also won't have a major catastrophe on your hands once he's a little bigger and loses it somewhere."

John nodded thoughtfully. "True," he said. "Although for the distance we're going to be away, once we're home I mean, maybe it would be safer to get a couple more, just in case."

"It certainly couldn't hurt," Joel agreed. "Do you want me to go while you're talking to Jeff and the rabble?"

John's eyes lit up and he sucked in a deep breath. "Ooh, you didn't just include Grandma under the heading of 'rabble' did you?" he asked with a shake of his head. "I _really_ don't think she'd appreciate that. Ruth and the rabble, maybe? No, that's just terrible. It sounds like one of those god-awful screaming-metal bands that Gordon likes listening to."

Joel thought for a moment. "How about Team Triple T?" he asked and then let out a snort of laughter at the blank look on John's face. "Team Tracy and Tin-Tin," he explained. "I think that covers most bases and Tin-Tin's pretty much an honorary Tracy anyway, isn't she? So, did you want me to go bear-shopping while you're on the vid-phone? I've got a couple of errands to run for Jeff in town anyway so it'd be no bother."

John nodded and gave Joel the details of the shop where he had purchased the bear. He then took Jacob from the older man and went to find one of the nurses to get him signed out of the nursery.

Joel waited for him to leave before making his own way out of the hospital.

~#~

John and Jacob, this time wearing red wrist & ankle bands, headed down to the curators office. When they arrived, John knocked tentatively on the door and hoped for a reply. Even though he'd been told that he could use the office whenever he wanted to he still felt a little uncomfortable about the idea of just going inside on his own.

Luckily for John, Carly Davidson was inside and quickly answered the door with a bright smile. She tickled Jacob under his chin and ushered John forwards into the small room. To John's amusement she pushed him down into her office chair and fussed around, making sure the vid-phone unit was within reach and checking that he knew how to use it properly. John eventually took pity on the woman and reassured her that both her office and vid-phone were in good hands and promised that he would seek her out if he had any problems. Carly took this as the polite dismissal that it was and hurried out of the office, closing the door quietly behind her as she left.

"Phew," John said, looking at Jacob who beamed up at him from his spot on John's knee. "I think someone's trying a little too hard to make up for upsetting Granddad, don't you? Now, how about we get you organised?"

John lifted Jacob off his knee and sat him on the desk in front of him. He supported the boy securely with his right arm and then removed the soggy muslin bib and tidied him up a little. Once he'd done the best he could John pulled Jacob close against his chest, wrapped an arm securely around his waist and leant across the desk to punch the code to connect him to Tracy Island into the vid-phone unit.

~#~

There was a pause before the call was answered but eventually Jeff's face appeared. "Hello John, hello Jacob. It's good to see you both. You just need to bear with Alan for one second…ah, there we go."

John heard a cheer go up on the island and Jeff disappeared from view. Even though he could no longer see Jeff, John could hear him telling Brains that he'd done a good job getting it working and thanking the young genius again for offering to spend some time up on Five so that Alan could come back down. John waited for a pause in the conversation and then spoke. "Er, hello. Dad? Alan? I'm not sure what's going on but all I can see at the moment is the wall. I'm guessing that's not what you intended?"

Alan's face appeared in the screen and he waved into the phone. "Small technical problem, fellas. We'll hopefully have it fixed for you in just a second." He lifted the base unit of the vid-phone away from the camera/screen section and pointed to something. "Do you mean this one, Brains?" John could hear Brians' answer to the affirmative and saw Alan start to pull a wire out of the back of the vid-phone before everything went black.

John gave Jacob a jiggle and spoke to the little boy with laughter in his voice. "I don't know what your crazy uncle thinks he's doing but it's obviously not working. I think he's cut us off." His assumption was proved wrong when, just seconds later, the screen flashed back into life and John found himself looking out into the sitting room on Tracy Island. Somehow, between them, Brains and Alan had rigged the vid-phone to use the pop-out screen on the wall, both for receiving and transmitting and because of this John could see both sofas, the chairs and the communications portraits that had, he noticed, been changed to show their casual non-International Rescue shots.

Alan stood with his hands on his hips, glaring up at John from the centre of the room. "Crazy am I?" he asked. "I think not. I'll have you know that this whole thing…" he stopped and waved at the screen. "…was my idea in the first place. I thought it would be better for everyone if we could see one another without us all having to take it in turns at the desk. You should show some respect for the younger generation, you know."

Much to Alan's chagrin, John burst out laughing. "You're the same generation as me, you great lump. This…" he stopped and waved at Jacob in the same way that Alan had waved at the screen. "…is the younger generation. Jacob, say hello to your Uncle Alan." He tapped the screen in an attempt to focus Jacob's attention on it and then dropped his voice to a stage whisper and said, "He got all this working, you know."

Alan blushed and then laughed when Jacob dropped his bear, squealed and leant forwards to take a swipe at the vid-screen. John managed to catch his hand just before it made contact with the glass and gently pulled him back. "Ah, ah," he said quietly. "No touching. We promised to give the office back in the same state that we found it, remember. How about we try waving?"

John took a careful hold of Jacob's right arm and gently made him wave at the screen. Jacob found this highly amusing and bounced up and down in excitement while making little grunting noises in the back of his throat.

"He likes me," Alan said proudly. "Hey, Dad, look. He likes me."

John heard Gordon quietly mutter 'He'll grow out of it' and then sniggered quietly as he saw Scott reach over to cuff the trouble maker across the back of his head. A loud exclamation of "Ow, Scott, what the heck?" came through the speakers before Gordon gave up and fell silent. Jeff walked into view and hung an arm across Alan's shoulders. "Hello again. So, John, what do you think of Alan's idea? I don't know why we haven't thought of it before, it makes much more sense being able to see you on the big screen. Jacob, I'd like to apologise in advance for this lot." He pulled Alan aside and waved at Scott, Gordon and Virgil. "They've not had much to do today and have still got far too much energy for this time of night. If they don't behave they'll be doing a couple of laps of the island before bed, I can tell you."

Virgil leant forwards and opened his mouth to complain that he hadn't done anything but Scott clamped a hand across his mouth and pulled him back down. "Virg, don't." he said quietly. "Just go and get Grandma. OK?"

Virgil nodded and scurried from the room. For a minute or so he could be heard shouting 'Grandma' and then it became obvious to everyone that he'd found Mrs Tracy when his shouts changed to 'Tin-Tin'.

"I think we'll leave him to it," Jeff said with a chuckle. "So, John, you obviously persuaded someone to let you use their office. Who was it and did they give you any trouble?"

John shrugged and then wrapped both arms around Jacob and leant his chin gently on the little boy's shoulder. "I'm in the curator's office," he said simply. "Dad, I can't work out if the woman's scared of you, in awe of you or just plain head-over-heels in love with you. She's overly helpful, overly friendly and…well, quite frankly, over the top. She wasn't like it when we arrived and I'm sure it's something to do with whatever you said to her."

Jeff chuckled at Gordon's cheeky wolf whistle. "Behave, yourself," he warned. "John, I think you're probably reading too much into it. Ms Davidson is most likely just trying to make up for getting off on the wrong foot with us…me…whatever. The rest of the staff there are more than helpful, she's probably just got a…different way about her."


	48. Chapter 48

~#~ (Chapter 48)

Jeff's dialogue came to a sudden halt as Virgil rushed back into the room with Tin-Tin in tow. Mrs Tracy followed at a more sedate pace and wandered over to where Jeff and Alan were standing. Alan gave her a peck on the cheek and went to extract Tin-Tin from Virgil's grasp. He then took the young woman over to the empty sofa and they sat in their usual seats with his arm protectively around her shoulders.

John remained in position, peeking over Jacob's shoulder with the little boy cuddled against him. The only thing that had changed since he'd been talking to Jeff was that he'd given Jacob the bear back. This was partly to keep his hands away from the screen and partly to stop him chewing on John's sleeve. Grandma took a moment to just stare at the screen where the pair were displayed. "Oh, Jeff," she said breathlessly. "Isn't he just the most precious thing? Johnny, he really is the spitting image of you. Oh, Tin-Tin, come and see."

Jeff put his arm around his mother's shoulders. "Tin-Tin's fine where she is, Mother," he said quietly. "That's why we've set it up like this. Now come on, I think we should all sit down before it all gets a bit much."

Mrs Tracy nodded and allowed Jeff to lead her to her chair. He then took the other single chair, that Gordon had been sat in a couple of days before and turned to address the screen. "So what's the story with the bear?" he asked. "Jacob seems quite taken with it."

John nodded and laughed as Jacob gave the bear a particularly ferocious looking bite accompanied by what could only be described as a growl. "I went clothes shopping this morning," he explained. "Only it kind of turned into toy shopping about half way through. The bear was sat in a shop window and it sort of called out to me. Uncle Jo's gone back to get another couple because Jacob seems to like this one so much. He says we need a spare in case one gets lost so I asked him to get two. It's too far to come if we ever need another replacement in a hurry."

Jeff nodded and chuckled before being interrupted by Mrs Tracy. "Johnny, the boy simply can't keep it out of his mouth," she pointed out. "Is he teething?"

John shrugged. "Kathy says that he might be starting to. Uncle Jo christened him the dribble monster this morning and, to be honest, I think it's quite apt. He wasn't half as slobbery as this just a couple of days ago."

As if he could understand what was being said Jacob sent the bear flying and blew a very wet raspberry in the direction of the vid-phone. John bent down to retrieve the bear and at the same moment Jacob leaned forwards and tried another swipe at the screen. He was only half successful because of John's arm around his waist but he managed to smear a couple of fingers worth of drool down the screen before John sat back up, let out a very unmanly squeak and pulled him upright again. Jacob turned his whole upper body around, smiled wetly and then grabbed a chunk of John's hair.

The sitting room on Tracy Island erupted into laughter as the Tracys watched John extract his hair from Jacob's grasp and then wipe the little boy and the screen down with a cloth. Once he'd finished cleaning the dribble from the top of the desk John pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, one-handedly folded it into a triangle and tied it loosely around Jacob's neck. He ran his free hand through his hair to keep it off his face and then held out a finger for Jacob to chew on. "I'm sorry." He frowned as he spoke quietly into the vid-phone. "I don't think this was such a clever idea. I wanted your first impressions of him to be good, not…well...I don't think I want to know what you think of him now."

Scott stood up and walked nearer the screen. "Johnny, you wanna know what I think?" he asked.

John looked him in the eye with a guarded expression on his face and after a moment he nodded.

"I think he's 100% Tracy," Scott said with a grin. "He might look like you but I think there's more than a little of Gordon's personality hidden away inside Jacob. I'm not sure it's going to be safe to bring him back to the island. I don't think we'll be able to handle two of them."

John laughed and shook his head. "I do believe you said something similar when I told you about a likeness between Jacob and a certain member of the family, who, I hasten to add, shall remain nameless. I'm getting the distinct impression that you don't want me around any more." John raised his eyebrows and smiled, letting Scott know that his words were being said in jest.

Scott went to reply but then couldn't think of a witty retort and closed his mouth with a snap. He held a finger up to the screen with a smirk. "I'll get back to you on that one," he said and then turned and strode back to his seat.

Gordon licked his finger and made an imaginary mark in the air. "Score one for John," he said quietly and then quickly dodged to one side as Scott made to cuff his head again. Gordon put a helpless pitch into his voice and cried, "Daaaad, Scott's being mean. Tell him to stop."

"I'll tell someone to stop," came Jeff's rumbling reply. "But it won't be Scott. Gordon, I've already had to tell you to behave yourself once this afternoon, don't make me tell you again. Now, I'll give you a choice, either you speak to your brother, and by brother I mean John, or you can to go to your room."

For a moment it looked like Gordon might be thinking about answering back but then without a word he turned away from Jeff and looked up at John. "You're going to let me teach him to swim, right?" he asked and the tense moment dissolved as everyone once again burst out laughing.

Once everyone calmed down John looked over at Gordon and replied. "Yes," he said. "You can teach him to swim and Virgil can teach him to paint and play the piano. Scott, Alan, you're just going to have to wait. Jacob's not touching a car, plane or rocket for at least another sixteen years."

Gordon fell about laughing as Alan groaned. "That's another two points for Johnny," he cackled and then scooted out of reach of both Scott who tried to grab him. Unfortunately this put him squarely into Alan's reach. Despite Tin-Tin's protestations the youngest Tracy in the room launched himself off the sofa and knocked Gordon's knees out from under him. He then fell upon the red-headed aquanaut and tickled him ruthlessly until Gordon was gasping for breath and pleading for mercy. "S-s-stop," he shrieked. "So-so-somebody, a-anybody, help."

Jacob had caught sight of the rapid movements on the screen and had momentarily given up gnawing on John's finger to watch intently. John sat quietly and smiled as Jacob gazed at his play-fighting uncles. Most of his attention was on the boy so he startled badly when Jacob suddenly banged both his hands on the tabletop and let out a long stream of unintelligible baby babble. John turned to the screen to find that Scott and Jeff had both moved in to break up the two youngest brothers. Scott grabbed Alan beneath his armpits and hauled him back onto the sofa where he fell into Tin-Tin's arms with a fit of giggles. Jeff grabbed hold of Gordon's belt and dragged him back over to his chair. He then sat on the chair and chuckled as he pinned a broadly-grinning Gordon on the floor between his legs.

John laughed loudly. "Oh, it's good to see that some things never change. Gordon, you look just like a naughty school boy, tucked in between Dad's legs like that."

Jeff's eyes met Scott's for a moment and he smirked as he leant down and patted Gordon's sweaty hair. "But my little Gordy's going to be a good boy for the rest of the day. Aren't you? You know what will happen if I find out you've been naughty again today, don't you?"

Gordon raked his hands through his hair and tried to pull it down over his eyes. He soon discovered that this wasn't half as effective as it had been when he'd been younger because his hair had been long enough to cover most of his face when he'd been at school. He let out a huff and pulled his knees up to his chest before sticking his bottom lip out as far as it would go and looking at the floor with a mock chastised expression on his face.

Jeff patted Gordon's head again. "I asked you a question, Gordon," he reminded him. "What happens if you're bad again today?" Gordon stuck his lip out even further and muttered something quietly to himself.

"What was that?" Jeff asked. "I couldn't hear you. Would you like to try that again?"

Gordon let out a sigh. He knew Jeff wasn't being entirely serious with him but also realised that he wasn't going to get away without answering. "You'll take away my pool privileges," he said quietly. "Please don't. I'll be good. I promise I will."

Jeff ruffled Gordon's hair and then burst out laughing which started everyone else off as well. Eventually everybody calmed down and Gordon waved a quick goodbye to John and Jacob before leaving the room.

Virgil stood up and wandered to the window. "I think we kept him dry for too long," he commented. "He's out there already."

Jeff walked up and placed a hand on Virgil's shoulder as he looked down towards the pool. Gordon had thrown himself into the water fully clothed and was rolling around as if he hadn't been in the pool for weeks rather than just that morning. Jeff shook his head. "You know, sometimes I have to wonder where we went wrong with that boy. I really do."

Jeff and Virgil turned back to the room to find Tin-Tin standing up and talking quietly to John and Jacob. Just a few minutes later Jacob started fussing and showing signs that he was more than ready for his afternoon nap. John quickly said his goodbyes to everyone and closed down the connection to the island. He laid Jacob against his chest and made sure the office was presentable before making his way quickly back up to the nursery. Once there he changed Jacob completely so the little boy was clean, warm and dry and within minutes of cuddling up to him with a bottle, Jacob was asleep.


	49. Chapter 49

~#~ (Chapter 49)

Jeff returned to Tasmania a couple of days later. By mutual consent he and Joel had kept any mention of funeral arrangements out of John's hearing and John, for his part, had guessed what they were doing and kept quiet. He knew the two men were trying to shield him by making the arrangements between themselves so was unsurprised when, over dinner, Jeff told him that the funeral would take place two days later.

~#~

The next day found John and Jeff waiting at the airport. The pair had arrived slightly earlier than necessary and sat in the lounge with a cup of coffee as they waited for Penelope's plane to appear. John spotted it first and smiled to Jeff as Lady Penelope's bright pink jet flew overhead in preparation for landing.

The Tracys beat the plane to the hangar and waited patiently by the door until it had taxied to a halt. The rear door of the plane slowly dropped open to reveal a ramp and very shortly afterwards a bright pink, family-saloon-sized car rolled gently down onto the hangar floor. Parker, who was driving the car, acknowledged the Tracys and carefully manoeuvred his way over to where they were waiting. He looked towards the plane to see Penelope, who was wearing a muted scarlet version of her usual candy-pink outfit, waiting at the top of the steps. He clambered out of the car and then took a moment to straighten his jacket and adjust his tie before he found himself held back by a hand on his shoulder. For a moment he just stared at the hand and then slowly scanned up the arm until his sapphire blue eyes met with the twinkling crystal blue ones of John Tracy.

At Parker's questioning look, John nodded in the direction of the plane. Parker automatically looked in the same direction and smiled when he realised why John had stopped him. Jeff bounded up the steps towards Penelope who greeted him with a smile, a hug and a peck on the cheek. As John and Parker watched, Jeff turned back around and escorted Penelope down the steps with his arm firmly around her waist.

"Pardon me if h'I am speaking h'out of place," Parker commented quietly. "…but Mister Tracy would do well to remember that M'lady h'aint 'alf h'as delicate h'as what she makes h'out to be. Don't you think?"

John chuckled and released his grip on Parker's shoulder. "Oh, he remembers, Parker. It's just not often he gets the chance to be chivalrous to a beautiful lady who's not going to assume there's an ulterior motive behind it."

Parker nodded and watched as the pair spoke quietly to one another while they approached. Jeff removed his hand from Penelope's waist as they neared the car and then he and Parker hung back to allow John a modicum of privacy when Penelope pulled him into a fierce hug.

John melted into the embrace and buried his face in the soft faux-fur around Penelope's neck as she hugged him tightly. "Oh, my boy. My dear, dear boy," she murmured. "I wanted to come sooner but your father said you needed time. How are you holding up? Are you alright? And the little one? How is he taking everything?"

John slipped his arms around Penelope's waist and revelled in the closeness for a few moments before pulling away. "Jacob's doing great," he replied softly. "He seems to have an inborn love of people and no fear of strangers, although I keep being told that that's his age rather than his personality. I guess we won't get to see the full extent of who he is until we get him home and settled down properly but that's not going to happen for a little while yet."

Penelope reached up and gripped John gently by the chin. She looked appraisingly in his eyes and then shook her head. "I couldn't help but notice that you only answered the questions about Jacob. I'm worried about you too, John. How are you coping with everything that's been going on?"

John slowly pulled his chin from Penelope's grip and then frowned slightly and shrugged. "I'm…er…variable," he said quietly. "I'm happy when I'm with Jacob and I don't think I could possibly love him any more than I already do, it's just…um…" John stopped and shrugged again.

"It's everything else that's trying to drag you down," Penelope finished for him. "…and you want this whole complicated and not particularly pleasant piece of your life to be over and done with so you can take your son home and settle him into his proper place among your family."

John nodded. "That's it. That's it exactly. Today seems, so far, to be an OK day but tomorrow's going to be hard. Thanks for coming, by the way. I know you're here for me and that you never got to meet Rosie but it feels better that she'll have a few friendly faces there for her…for her…um…final send-off."

John turned suddenly and stepped away. He scrubbed his hands viciously across his eyes and let out a deep, shaky sigh before turning and walking back into Penelope's awaiting arms. "I'm sorry," he muttered into her neck. "Maybe variable wasn't the right word to use…maybe volatile would have been better. This isn't me, Penny. You know it's not. I just want the next few weeks to be over then I can get back to something approaching normality."

Penelope patted John's back and gently petted his hair. Jeff had already warned her about John's fluctuating emotions so she hadn't been shocked by the sudden onset of tears nor the apparent sudden need to snuggle. "John, dear, it's me who's sorry, I shouldn't have pushed you. That's not why I came here and for that I apologise. Now, as nice as this is, it's not helping to get us away from the airport. I need to freshen up after the flight so how about you and Jeff show us where the hotel is. Once I've powdered my nose we can all go and have something to eat and if you feel the need for more cuddling afterwards, well, I'll see what I can do to oblige."

Penelope waited for the moment that her words got through to John and wasn't disappointed when it arrived. He let out a chuckle of warm air against her neck and then slowly pulled himself upright and looked into her eye with a scandalised expression on his face. "God, Penny, don't let Father hear you talking like that," he said. "He might take it the wrong way and then I'll really be in trouble. I still can't believe he hasn't grounded me for life for managing to produce Jacob in the first place."

Penelope smiled and stroked John's hair flat before pulling his head down and planting a firm kiss on his forehead. "That'll never happen and I'll tell you why," she whispered conspiratorially. "The man's smitten. Even though the news of Jacob's arrival was unexpected and has caused the pair of you grief and upset, Jeff Tracy is one hundred percent, absolutely besotted with your little boy and don't let him try to make you believe otherwise. He's called me several times over the past few days, both for making arrangements and just to talk. The 'just to talk' conversations have been filled with 'Jacob this' and 'Jacob that' even though he was back on the island. Mind you, Scott's almost as bad, he was retelling Jeff's stories back to me over dinner the other night."

"Well Scott hasn't met Jacob in person so he doesn't have any stories of his own yet," John replied. "You know, Scott answered when I called in the first night after Dad left and I think he was quite disappointed that I didn't have Jacob with me so he could meet him before everyone else. It's almost incomprehensible to think that he's so determined never to become a father…he's a natural."

"And that in itself is the problem," Penelope agreed sadly. "He says it himself, he's been a second father to the four of you for over half his life. He knows what it's like to be tied down to a child's timetables and schedules, football matches, swimming lessons, parent's evenings, that sort of thing. I know your Grandmother did a huge amount but neither she nor Jeff could have coped without Scott's help, especially once the business started taking off. Despite what he says though, I wouldn't write Scott off completely just syet. You never know what might happen in the future and there's still plenty of time for some sweet young thing to change his mind, he's got a good few years in him yet."

John clapped his hand gently across Penelope's mouth. "Penny, stop. I am so not having a discussion about my big brother's potency, let alone in the middle of a draughty aircraft hangar. I can't believe I'm discussing Scott's love-life…or rather his lack of it…with you at all." He stopped and dropped his hand away from her mouth and waggled a finger in her direction instead. "Oh, man, you're good. I'd forgotten just how good your diversionary tactics are," he said. "Come on, let's get you to the hotel and then after we eat I can introduce you to Jacob. I'm positive he'll be more than happy to be on the receiving end of that post-lunch cuddle that you offered me...assuming you can pry him away from his granddad of course."


	50. Chapter 50

~#~ (Chapter 50)

After lunch John, Jeff, Penelope and Parker travelled to the hospital. Jeff took John and Parker, as usual, took Penelope but opted to remain outside with the car rather than enter the hospital.

Penelope, like everyone else before her, was enchanted by Jacob and informed John, in no uncertain terms, that he was going to be visiting Creighton-Ward Manor in the very near future and that she would be taking his son 'out and about' because 'the girls are just simply going to adore him.'

~#~

All too soon it was time to travel back to the hotel to wash up before dinner. Penelope light-heartedly complained to Jeff about the 'hateful little car' that Parker was currently driving her around in. FAB1 was just too big and heavy for the particular jet that they had flown from England in and they hadn't been able to bring the larger plane because it being serviced.

Jeff's rental car and Penelope's candy-pink chauffer-driven vehicle followed one another back to the hotel parking lot and the four occupants soon disembarked and went to their rooms to wash up, and in Penelope's case change, before dinner.

Jeff and John got to the restaurant and were seated for a full half an hour before Penelope finally arrived, dressed in a glamorous-looking pastel-pink evening gown finished with a soft, grey faux-fur stole. John whistled quietly as she approached the table and she did a single, slow pirouette before seating herself in the chair that Jeff held out for her.

"Hello, you two," she said quietly, greeting the two men with a gentle peck on the cheek. "I do hope you haven't been waiting long, I just couldn't decide what to wear."

Jeff smiled as he retook his seat. "Well, Penny, you look simply splendid, as always," he said. "Now, dare I ask what you've done with that butler of yours? His absence is, shall I say, a little unexpected."

"Now, now, Jeff. It's all fine," Penelope replied quietly. "Parker is either down in the kitchens or in the staff quarters. He said he'd feel more at home with the workers rather than up with the…how did he put it? Oh yes, rather than up with the 'lords h'and ladies of the h'aristocracy'."

John let out a snort as Penelope did a near-perfect imitation of Parker's accent and Jeff filled a glass with a deep, red wine and handed it to Penelope. "Well, wherever he feels happiest, I suppose," he said. "Although you may have to remove him if he starts trying to interfere with the running of the kitchen. I don't think this place would appreciate their crockery hitting the floor any more than Mother does anytime Kyrano and Parker are on the island together."

John took a sip of his drink before speaking. "You do know that the best crockery gets hidden away within minutes of Grandma getting notice of one of Penny's visits?" he said. "She's got a whole other set now that stays out until Parker's well off the island. I've often wondered if Kyrano realises exactly why she does it and whether he minds."

Jeff nodded. "Oh, he'll realise alright but he's just got more sense than to question one of your grandmother's decisions. If she feels the need to protect the crockery then Kyrano's wise to leave her be."

"Absolutely, Darling," Penelope added. "I must admit to not realising things were quite that bad between the pair of them though. Maybe we'll have to think of a proper solution before I come and visit you next."

Jeff shrugged. "I don't know, Penny. It sounds like Mother's got it mostly under control. I'm sure I'll be the first to hear about it if she decides that she can't handle them."

John snorted again and took another sip of his drink before Jeff could call him on it. If the animosity between Kyrano and Parker got to the stage when Mrs Tracy thought she couldn't handle it then Jeff would likely never hear the end of it. An upset Ruth Tracy was a force to be reckoned with. John had only truly seen her in a proper rage once and he hoped never to have a repeat performance. Jeff had left the five brothers playing in the garden of Ruth's homestead in Kansas while he had words with their grandmother. Those 'words' were supposed to be Jeff gently persuading Ruth that it would be in everyone's best interests for her to move to Tracy Island with them but he had underestimated the stubborn will of the diminutive woman. His gentle coaxing had been met with a mulish obstinacy that she was neither too old nor too frail to continue to live on the farm by herself. The discussion had escalated to the point of shouting and Scott and John had been forced to move the younger children further from the house when they became upset by the argument between the two most important adults in their lives.

Ultimately the dispute had ended, very suddenly, in the cruellest way possible. Ruth, having realised that their squabble had been heard by the children, left the house and turned to slam the door in Jeff's face as she went. Unfortunately as she turned back towards the boys, who were huddled together on the floor by Jeff's truck, the hem of her dress caught on a loose board on the decking and upended her. She tumbled head over heels down the steps and landed in a motionless, sprawled heap on the path. Scott was in motion before he realised it and between the two of them, he and Jeff had picked up the fallen woman and carried her back into the house before calling the doctor. As well as the concussion that had knocked her out, Ruth had suffered a broken wrist and a badly wrenched knee and Jeff had suffered a guilt trip the size of Thunderbird 5.

Mrs Tracy had a lot of time to think while her injuries were healing and eventually came to the decision for herself that it might be time for her to move to the island. She had him visit her, without the boys this time, and agreed to move to the island only on the proviso that Jeff retained the farm as a second home. He had chuckled, hugged her and told her that he'd never had any intention of selling the farm. The workers, who Jeff had kept on after his father's death, could continue to tend the land and he would employ someone to come in and care for the house while it was empty. The homestead had always been a safe-haven for Jeff and the boys and would continue to be somewhere that any of them could go to on the occasion that they needed time away from everyone else. Ruth promptly scolded him for not explaining that sooner and then proceeded to demand that he send a couple of the boys over the following week to help her pack up the most precious of her belongings.

Penelope didn't know what to make of the thoughtful look that passed across John's face and hastily changed the subject onto one more close to her heart…shopping. Penelope had been admiring some of Jacob's tiny outfits that afternoon and John had, much to her delight, admitted to his shopping splurge. Over dinner she grilled him relentlessly about the quantity, quality and variety of shops available in Hobart and by the time both the meal and dessert were complete the young man was talked out and more than ready for bed.

John excused himself as soon as everyone had finished their after-dinner coffee and managed to stay awake just long enough to change out of his clothes and clean his teeth and was asleep less than a minute after stretching out on his bed.

~#~

Jeff and Penelope remained downstairs for a little longer. The next day was going to be particularly tough on John and the pair conspired to keep a close eye on the young man. They both knew that he'd be reluctant to reach out for support but agreed that he probably wasn't strong enough to last out the day without help. After a little more planning they enjoyed a quiet brandy together and then retired to their separate rooms for the night.


	51. Chapter 51

~#~ (Chapter 51)

**Authors note: Tissues require for reading this chapter. It was the hardest chapter so far to write and many tears were shed during the process (literally). I hope I've done it justice.**

~#~

The next thing John was aware of was rolling over in bed and startling badly when he realised he was no longer alone in the room. Jeff, whose hair was still damp from the shower, was up, dressed and sitting on the chair beside the bed watching him. "Dad?" he asked sleepily. "Is everything OK? What time is it?"

"Good morning to you too," Jeff replied with a chuckle. "Everything's fine and I'm sorry if I made you jump. I came to wake you but you looked so peaceful I just didn't have the heart."

A wrinkle crossed John's forehead. "How long have you been there?" he asked.

Jeff chuckled. "Only about twenty minutes. It was still early and I figured a little more sleep wouldn't do you any harm. If you hadn't woken by half past I was going to have to get you up anyway, don't forget we're meeting Penny for breakfast at eight."

John looked blearily over to the clock on the table beside the bed. "That gives me nearly forty minutes," he said. "Plenty of time. I don't suppose there's any coffee going?"

Jeff smiled and then leaned slightly to one side so that John could see the table. On it sat a tray with a sealed flask, two large mugs and a milk jug. "I took the liberty of ordering some. Do you want it now or after you shower?"

John laughed. "Do you really need to ask?" He then pushed the bedcovers aside and wandered over to the desk. "I take it you're having some too?"

Jeff just grinned and held out his hand for a mug.

~#~

Once the coffee was drunk and John was showered and dressed, he and Jeff made their way down to breakfast. Penelope, for once, had beaten them and was seated at a table talking quietly to Parker who was standing beside her. As the Tracys approached, she dismissed him and rose to greet the two men. The three then sat down for breakfast which Jeff ate heartily, Penelope ate daintily and John barely touched. He picked half-heartedly at a piece of toast and then gave up and resorted to more coffee.

~#~

After breakfast everyone went back to their rooms to prepare for the funeral. Jeff went to his wardrobe and removed the two suit carriers that he'd brought back from Tracy Island. He checked which was which and laid one on his bed before taking the other through the adjoining bathroom and handing it to John who took it with a sad smile.

"I hate this suit," the younger man said quietly as he opened the wardrobe door just enough to hang the carrier on. "I mean I don't have anything against the suit per se, just what it stands for and…um…what it means when I have to use it."

Jeff rested a hand gently against the side of John's face and pulled him round so he was facing him. "I know," he agreed. "…and I understand about the suit. Your grandmother shed a few tears when she was ironing them and packing them up. It's entirely possible that she wanted to be here today but she must have realised that I would've vetoed the idea because she didn't say anything. Despite what she tries to convey, Mother isn't getting any younger and she certainly doesn't need the extra stress that the long flight, jet lag and the funeral would have created. No, she's better off where she is, even if she's a little disgruntled about it, at least she's safe."

John nodded and leaned his head into Jeff's hand with a sigh. "So, I know we haven't discussed what's going to happen today but do you have anything in particular that you want me to say or do?"

Jeff shook his head. "Whatever you feel comfortable with," he replied. "All the arrangements are made so you don't need to worry about anything on that side of things but if you want to say something during the service then that would be fine. The cars will be here at 10.30 and the service is being held the crematorium at 11.15. I haven't ordered a hearse. Bearing in mind how Rosie died I though it would be…inappropriate."

~#~

The funeral itself was a small, quiet affair. Parker, being unable to chauffer the hired cars, had been bullied into a rented suit and sat uncomfortably beside Penelope until the cars pulled into the immaculately tended grounds of the Cornelian Bay Cemetery. As soon as the cars pulled to a halt he jumped out and hung back to allow Penelope, John, Jeff and Joel to pass him.

A small group of people were waiting outside the crematorium as they walked from the cars and Jeff gently encouraged John to speak to each of them, while maintaining a solid supporting presence behind his son. John and by default, Jeff, were introduced to Frank Richards, Spencer Allan's partner, who they had heard much about but had never met. Carly Davidson was there, representing the hospital and Malcolm Hines was also present, along with his wife and his daughter, a young woman who John recognised as being the receptionist at the Hines & Huberts' office.

As he passed the Hines family, John realised there were only two more people left to speak to. He realised that one of these two was Jayne, the nurse who had looked after him during his first few days in Hobart. She gave both John and Jeff a gentle hug as they walked up and then introduced her friend. The other girl, who John noticed was almost the complete opposite of Jayne, turned out to be her flatmate who had come along as moral support. Where Jayne was tiny, raven-haired and confident, Susan was chubby, blonde and shy. She blushed to the roots of her hair when introduced to John and then clammed up completely when Jayne tried to introduce her to Jeff. It was something Jeff was quite used to but never failed to raise a smile on John's face when he saw it happen.

The smile faded almost instantly as a young man stepped through the door of the main crematorium building and made his way slowly towards Joel. John watched the two men converse quietly for a few moments before the young man nodded and positioned himself smartly in front of the door. Joel made his way over to where John was standing and, despite it being there since they got out of the car, John became aware of Jeff's hand resting gently against the small of his back.

"They're ready for you," Joel announced quietly and nodded towards the door. "We've arranged for you to have some time for yourself before the service. Take as long as you need and someone will come and get the rest of us whenever you're ready."

John sucked in a deep breath and was appreciative of the supportive pressure which came from Jeff's hand. He hesitated and then startled slightly as a soft hand insinuated itself within his own. He gave the hand a gentle squeeze and looked down into Penelope's clear blue eyes. She gave his hand an answering squeeze, followed by a gentle tug and that was enough to get John moving.

Slowly, with one hand clasped in Penelope's and with the unwavering support of his father's hand against his back, John entered the building.

~#~

The interior of the crematorium was as neat and orderly as the grounds outside. The building itself had been designed in such a way as to allow as much natural light inside as possible and the roof of the blue/grey entrance hall contained large glass panels through which the Hobart sunshine now shone.

John, Jeff and Penelope were escorted through to the small chapel area where Rosie's burnished mahogany coffin sat on a raised plinth. John froze the moment he caught sight of the casket and Jeff was forced to pull a flustered Penelope aside and press her down into the front pew before he was able to turn his attentions back to his son.

Slowly he stepped up behind John and wrapped an arm around his waist. "You knew she'd be here," he whispered quietly against John's ear. "She had to be, it's why we're all here. I know there are no words to prepare you for it but this is your chance to say goodbye, John. Go and talk to her. Make your peace with Rosie and say goodbye."

Jeff could feel John trembling as he stood and stared at the polished wooden box in front of him. He unwound his arm from around John's waist and gently nudged him forwards. "I'll be right here if you need me." He stepped backwards and sat down beside Penelope who shot him a worried look before settling back in her seat. John took a single, cautious step forwards and then turned back to look at Jeff who nodded his encouragement.

John took several more hesitant steps until he found himself level with the coffin and once there he took a deep breath and placed the palm of his left hand flat against the wooden lid. "Hi Rosie," he murmured. "I don't know quite what I'm supposed say right now but I miss you, Baby. I can't begin to understand what went wrong between us nor why you felt you couldn't tell me about Jacob but I need you to know that I'm going to look after him for you and that I'll love him and care for him 'til the end of my days. I'll bring him up the best that I possibly can and I'll tell him all about his Mama. I'll make sure he knows how beautiful you were and tell him how your eyes sparkled and glimmered whenever you laughed. I'll tell him about your hair glowing gold in the sun and blue in the moonlight and I'll tell him how very full of life you always were. I'll even tell him about how you saved that little scrap of a kitten that you saw being thrown in the stream and how you sat up with him every night for a week because you were afraid that he'd stop breathing if you left him alone."

Squeaks of emotion began to break into John's hushed speech and his breathing became erratic as more and more memories of his time with Rosie raced through his mind. "Why?" he said. "Why, when you were such a kind-hearted and compassionate person would you do this to me? To Jacob? We could have been a family but you never gave us that chance and I hate you for that. I love you…I'll always love you but I hate you. I hate you for putting me through this and I hate that Jacob will never truly know his mother and most of all I hate that I'll never see you again."

John's voice broke completely at this point and he turned away from the coffin, instinctively knowing that Jeff had risen from his seat and was standing quietly behind him. John launched himself into his father's waiting arms and allowed the older man to lower him onto the front pew beside Penelope. Penny promptly wrapped her arms around the lower portion of his torso and held him close as Jeff supported his upper body and one shoulder against his chest and sat with John's face buried in the crook of his neck.

Unfortunately for John this meant that his body ended up being twisted uncomfortably and meant that ultimately he was unable to remain in the position for long. After just a few short minutes he was forced to untangle himself from the others and sit up on his own and when he did so it was with a distraught sigh. He sat, hunched over on the front of the pew with his elbows on his knees and his hands fisted tightly in his hair. Tears flowed down his face and fell unheeded onto the floor for several seconds until Jeff pulled a large handkerchief from his jacket pocket and held it out into John's tear-filled field of vision.

John let out a noise that sounded partway between a chuckle and a sob and let go of his hair so he could swipe the handkerchief from Jeff's grasp. He shook it out and buried his face in the soft material for a moment before wiping his eyes and blowing his nose. After a cautious look at Jeff he screwed the whole thing into a ball and crammed it into his jacket pocket before leaning sideways and resting his head on Jeff's left shoulder.

"Sorry," he said quietly. "I kind of hoped I was done with all that. I don't know how much of all that you could hear but I don't think I really did what you wanted me to do up there."

Jeff reached up with his right hand and stroked John's hair into some semblance of order. "I didn't hear all of it but from the bits I could make out you did exactly what I'd hoped you would do. In fact it's the exact reason I arranged for you to have some time in here before the service. There's only a certain amount of anger and frustration that you can let out when the object of that rage is so far out of reach. That's something that Mother told me after…well, you know when. I can't say that I believed her at the time but afterwards, when I stopped to think about, it I realised she was right."

John snorted and then hastily fished the handkerchief back out of his pocket as the sudden exhalation of air upset the delicate balance in his nose. "Grandma usually is," he replied eventually. "You of all people should've known that."

Jeff nodded and leant his cheek against John's head. "I knew it then and I know it now. It's just that nothing, and I mean nothing, was making sense in those few weeks...or was it months? I lost chunks of time without even realising it and I really don't know what I would have done if your Grandmother hadn't stepped in to help with the five of you. Scott took far too much on, even with her help and, to this day, I still worry about how that affected his ability to make friends and relationships while he was in his high school."

John nodded against Jeff's shoulder. "You don't need to worry about Scott. He did alright for himself and had plenty of friends of both genders. He was butch and sporty enough to be one of the guys and the fact that he so obviously doted on his little brothers was a huge hit with the girls. Scott only needed to turn up somewhere with Alan in tow and he'd have the girls flocking round him but I seem to remember that the same didn't apply where Gordon was concerned. Apparently he was neither as endearing nor agreeable as Alan and didn't excerpt the same pull on the girls. It's quite ironic if you thing about which of us is most often found fighting off the women nowadays."

Jeff snorted. "That's true," he replied. "Although if I'm to believe everything Scott tells me then there's not all that much 'fighting off' being done."

"Hmm," John murmured and then shrugged. "I couldn't say for certain, I'm not really around enough to keep track of that sort of thing but if that's what Scott says then it's probably true." John fell quiet for a moment and then realised that what he'd been trying to say about Scott might not have got through clearly enough. "What I was saying though, before I mean, was that you did good with Scott, the same way that you did good with the rest of us. Sure, there was a while when we didn't entirely understand what was going on and sometimes we didn't know who, if anyone, was going to be there when we got home from school but between us, and by that I mean all seven of us, we…well we coped. We survived the blip and came out the other side of it as a fiercely strong family unit, one that was forged so strongly that it's still rock solid all these years later."

Jeff gave John's shoulder a gentle squeeze. "I'm glad you feel that way, John, but don't forget that solid rock had just been built upon. There are eight of us now, thanks to the little lady over there." Jeff lifted his hand from John's shoulder and motioned towards the coffin. "True there could have been nine but for reasons that we don't currently understand that couldn't happen but still, there are eight of us where before there were only seven and that can't be a bad thing."

John smiled a slow, sad smile and then looked around him as he realised that he and Jeff were alone. "Where'd Penny go?" he asked with confusion in his voice. "…and _when_ did she go?"

"She left while you were watering the floor," Jeff replied and nudged John gently on the shoulder when he looked stricken. "Don't worry about it," he said quietly. "You know she won't say anything and Penny's about the least judgemental person I know so you know that she will neither criticise nor condemn you for showing your emotions. No doubt she's out there at the moment warning our guests that they will be waiting a little longer than had previously been anticipated but they're all reasonable people and they _will_ understand."

John nodded his head and then pulled himself upright in his chair. He pulled a clean handkerchief from one of his pockets and wiped his eyes again before standing up and, to Jeff's surprise, walking back over to the coffin. "Hi," he said quietly. "It's me again. I'm sorry, I didn't mean what I said before. I don't hate you, I'm just a bit upset right now. I couldn't stand that being the last thing I said to you so I'm going to try again. I've loved you, Rosie, for a very long time…possibly even since college. I don't know if I didn't tell you that enough or if you didn't believe me but it's true. I'll always love you, Baby and I'll always remember you with the fondest of memories. I promise that I'll bring Jacob up as best I can and that I'll love him enough for both of us. Thank you for giving me my son, I only wish that were here and able to share him with me. I'll see you again someday, when my time here is done and maybe next time we can be a proper family. Until then I ask that you and Mama watch over our family and that you keep them from harm. Please, just never forget that I love you. Goodbye."

John kissed his finger tips and pressed them against the brass name plate on the lid of the casket. He then turned and walked quickly from the room.

~#~

Jeff remained seated for several seconds before getting up and wandering outside. John was nowhere to be seen but a nearby staff member confirmed that he hadn't left the building.

Jeff made his way over to where Penelope was quietly talking to Joel. "Using the assumption that John's in the bathroom, I think we're about ready to go inside. Give me a couple of minutes to find him and then bring everyone in."

Penelope spotted movement in the open doorway and looked over to see John squinting out into the sunlight. "Jeff, dear, finding him won't be necessary. He's come to get us himself, although from the look of him he could do with a couple of aspirin or…something."

Jeff turned round to see John still waiting in the doorway. "He'll be fine, just as long as no-one expects anything of any description out of him this afternoon. I think he was expecting to spend the rest of the day with Jacob but after witnessing the emotional catharsis he's just had in there, I'd be very surprised if he's still awake by the time we get back to the hotel." Jeff turned to Joel who had moved to stand beside him. "Go and round up the others, Jo. Let's get this done."


	52. Chapter 52

~#~ (Chapter 52)

John sat quietly through the service and, as Jeff had predicted, put himself to bed straight after getting back to the hotel. Jeff checked on him several times throughout the early part of the afternoon but gave up after his third attempt when he discovered that John had pulled the covers up over his head, a clear signal that he knew Jeff had been watching him and that he wanted to be left alone. Jeff, for want of something better to do, took Penelope to the hospital and left a now casually dressed Parker to keep an eye on John.

~#~

When they returned, several hours later, Penelope went to her room to freshen up and Jeff went to John's to see if he could persuade him to get up and eat something.

When he pushed the door to the bathroom open, Jeff was surprised to find the room empty. There was a covered tray on the table which, upon investigation, held half a bowl of soup and a couple of torn-up bread rolls. Jeff smiled to himself, it looked like Parker had managed to get at least a little sustenance into John before the pair of them had left the room.

Jeff left John's room and then wandered down the corridor to Joel's room and rapped on the door. Joel answered it with a grin as if he'd been expecting the visit for some time and then stepped back to let Jeff into the room. "Hello, Jeff," he said cheerily. "Everything alright at the hospital? Jacob OK?"

Jeff nodded. "Jacob's fine, although he seemed to know that there's something going on today. He was very quiet and grizzly and just wanted to be held and cuddled the whole time Penny and myself were there. Jo, I know he hasn't had John around for all that long but I can't help but think that he was missing him today."

Joel nodded. "You of all people should be able to recognise those signs," he replied softly. "As for John, well, there's still time for him to visit yet…just as long as he's not too much longer."

"Where is he, anyway?" Jeff suddenly remembered why he'd sought Joel out in the first place. "From what I can see he's been fed but more than that I don't know. Is Parker still with him or has he gone out alone?"

Joel shook his head. "He tried to go out alone," he said with a chuckle. "…and without lunch but your Parker wouldn't let him. I thought I was going to have to step in and split the pair of them up at one point. I've never seen Parker in any sort of off duty capacity before but I tell you, when he's out from under Penelope's gaze, and when he knows what he's saying is right, then the man's a force to be reckoned with. There was no way John was getting out of his room without eating at least something and even once he had then he wasn't getting out alone. Parker sat and watched John to make sure he ate and then took him downstairs. Apparently they've gone for a walk but they've taken the car so I'm not sure exactly where they've gone."

Jeff nodded. "Fair enough," he replied. "Parker's acted as babysitter to the boys throughout their whole lives and I can't imagine him taking any nonsense from them, even now. There was many a night that Lucille, Penny and myself were out at some function or other until the early hours and more often than not it was Parker who was left with the boys. I never questioned what they got up to when he looked after them but I'm pretty certain the fact that every single one of them can pick their way out of a locked room is a direct result of some of those nights."

Joel laughed loudly at that and then clapped Jeff on the back. "They've turned out alright, no matter what spurious things they may have been taught," he said with a smile. "…and I'm sure John will search you out as soon as he gets back. What are you going to do in the meantime?"

Jeff raised his arm and looked at his watch. "I'm going to call Scott," he replied. "Virgil and Onaha should have just about finished working out what they're going to need to Jacob-proof the island and if they're done then I need to tell Alan what he's going to be doing for the next couple of days. That could be an…um…interesting discussion."

A crinkle formed on Joel's forehead as he tried to remember if he knew what Jeff had planned for Alan. He shook his head as he realised that he didn't have a clue what Jeff was talking about but as he wasn't offering any more information, Joel decided that it probably didn't matter anyway.

~#~

After practically bullying John into eating his lunch, Parker drove him to the edge of Seven Mile Beach and then remained with the car while the quiet young man wandered slowly down towards the sea.

When John returned after about an hour, Parker had switched the radio on and was leaning against the car listening to the sports news. As he saw John approach he flicked the radio off again and stepped forwards to greet him.

"Master Tracy, 'ow was your walk?" he asked. "H'I trust that the location met with your h'approval?"

John smiled gently. "It's just what I needed, Parker, thank you. I didn't have a clue the beach was this close but the space and quiet was just what I needed."

Parker nodded knowingly. "H'I 'ave noticed, h'over the years, that you Tracys tend to commune with Poseidon when you h'are stressed. H'I've always thought this to be…h'interesting for a family what grew up h'in the middle of such an h'enormous landmass."

John snorted. "Yeah, Kansas and the sea are kind of…far apart," he replied. "It's not just the sea, anyway. We all talk to the sky at times as well…or the stars, at any rate. At least I know how that one got started though." He stopped and looked at Parker who nodded for him to carry on. John was pretty sure that the butler knew the story but was listening intently so he continued. "Mama used to tell us to shout goodnight to Dad whenever he was on a mission and then Grandma…Grandma sort of extended it after Mama died. I'll always remember her sitting Alan and Gordy down and explaining that Mama couldn't come home because she'd been turned into an angel. She said that just because we couldn't see Mama any more it didn't mean that she wasn't there and she told us that we could talk to her, up in the stars, whenever we wanted and that even if the stars weren't out, the angels would still hear us."

Parker remained quiet when John fell into a reflective silence. John resurfaced a few moments later and gave Parker a sheepish smile and a quietly muttered apology before climbing back into the car.


	53. Chapter 53

~#~ (Chapter 53)

After leaving Joel, Jeff went to tell Penelope that both her car and her butler were temporarily unavailable. Penny took the news well and laughingly told Jeff that he would have to look after her until Parker returned.

Jeff laughed along with Penelope and then told her that he'd be back to amuse her once he'd spoken to Scott. Penny decided that she 'just had to speak to Tin-Tin' so Jeff took her by the arm and escorted her back to his room where they could speak to the island for as long as they needed to with no fear of being overheard.

~#~

The call remained unanswered for a long time and Jeff was just about to give up when Gordon finally accepted the incoming connection. Looking very flushed, he flung himself into view for a brief moment and then squealed and promptly disappeared when the chair he'd landed in tipped to one side and took him down with it.

Jeff leant forwards in alarm and called Gordon's name, with increasing volume, when his son didn't immediately reappear. Penny watched him and shook her head. She then stood up, rested a gentle hand on his arm and pushed him down into the chair in front of the desk.

"Oh dear," she murmured. "Jeff, you do have a tendency to get yourself worked up over the most trivial of things where your boys are concerned. Gordon is perfectly fine and if you'd calm down and listen for a moment then you'd realise it too."

Jeff snapped his mouth shut and looked briefly up at Penelope before turning his attention back to the screen. Now that he wasn't frantically calling Gordon's name over the sounds coming from the island he could see, or rather hear, why Penelope had been so confident that Gordon was unharmed. The only noise coming back through the vid-phone unit was laughter, clearly from Gordon who, by the muffled quality of the sound, was still somewhere on the floor behind the desk.

"Now you see?" Penny asked quietly as she leaned down to peer at the screen. "But Jeff, I have to ask…why is Gordon alone when he's clearly incapable of looking after himself."

Jeff shook his head, looked up at Penny and shrugged. "Penny, I'm as much in the dark as you are. As for where everyone else is…well, let's just say that Scott better have a damn good reason for letting Gordon get himself in such a state. What if they were called out? There's no way he's able to fly anything at the moment and he's _supposed_ to be acting as One's main pilot while Scott's flying the desk."

Penelope shrugged and then leaned past him and tapped on the screen. "Gordon. Gordon, darling, please get up so we can see that you're alright. Your poor father's worrying himself silly that you're hurt and he's not going to believe that you're alright until he can see it for himself. Gordon? Can you hear me?"

A hand appeared from below the desk and very soon after the rest of the Gordon followed. He clambered to his feet and stretched his back, which let out a series of painful sounding cracks, and then leaned down to pick up the chair with a somewhat bemused look on his face.

Penelope watched as Gordon sat in the now-upright chair and peered into the screen, blinking hard. "Hey, Penelope. Um, are you in Dad's room?"

Gordon wriggled his shoulders and noisily cracked his back again which made Penelope wince. "Gordon, please stop that, my dear. You're supposed to be proving to your father that you're alright."

"And you're not doing a bang up job of it at the moment," Jeff added. He then felt a little guilty when Gordon sunk against the back of the chair and pouted at the screen. The effect was spoiled by the fact that Gordon fidgeted constantly while he was pouting and he soon gave up. He leaned forwards, rested one of his arms on the top of the desk and then rested his chin on it. This gave Jeff and Penelope a very odd but close-up view of his slightly bloodshot eyes.

Jeff found himself hunkering down in the chair so he could sit at eye level with son. "Gordon, are you sure you're alright?" he asked. "What's going on? And where are Scott and the others?"

An odd look crossed Gordon's face and he let out a tired-sounding chuckle. "Scott's looking for Alan," he replied without lifting his chin from his arm. "…but if Alan's got any sense then he won't be found 'cos Scott's really mad. He was ranting about Alan being immature and irresponsible and he was going on about how the younger members of the family would do well to remember who's in charge when Dad…when you're not about. I think Alan was trying to be funny when he told Scott that he had no authority over anything that didn't have an International Rescue badge on it and that where the kitchen or house were concerned, Grandma would always be in charge. As I say, I _think_ he was trying to be funny but it really didn't come out that way." Gordon stopped and rubbed his free hand across his forehead before he winced and pressed the palm firmly against one of his temples. "I don't feel too good, Dad and my head hurts. I think I'm gonna go and lie down."

Jeff nodded in concern. "Gordon, let Virgil know if you're not feeling well, or at least tell him that you're going to bed so he can check on you from time to time. The last thing we need at the moment is a bug of some sort knocking any or all of you out of action. If you think you might have the start of something then he'll hopefully be able to catch it before it gets a proper grip on you."

Gordon nodded tiredly and then cast his amber coloured eyes away from the screen. After a moment he sat up and moved away until only one of this shoulders was in view of the camera. Jeff and Penny could hear a quiet voice in the background but couldn't make out any actual words until Gordon spoke again. "No. I haven't seen him since you chased him off. He hasn't come this way."

There were more muffled words before Gordon shook his head and pointed at the screen. "Dad's on the phone and he says that I've got to find Virg before I go. Do you…oh, hey...what? Oh. OK."

A hand reached around Gordon's shoulders and gently coaxed him to his feet as Scott's voice came clearly through the vid-phone. "Up you come, big guy. Let Uncle Virg get you put to bed and I promise you'll feel better in the morning."

Gordon mumbled something in reply and then leaned back into view and said a hurried goodbye to Jeff and Penny before Virgil dragged him from the room.

~#~

Once Gordon was gone, Scott dropped down into the chair in front of the vid-phone. He let out a long breath and scrubbed at his face before looking up and realising that Jeff and Penny were both watching him.

"Oh, hi Penny," he said. "Sorry, I didn't realise you were there as well." He stopped and looked closer at the screen. "Um, I don't mean to pry but are you in Dad's room?"

Jeff snorted as Penelope let out an infuriated sigh. "You boys, I swear you're all just as bad as each other," she said. "Yes, for your information, I am in your father's room. Partly because that's where the phone is and partly because Jeff has been tasked with keeping me amused this afternoon. Your brother saw fit to make off with both my butler and my car so I, in return, have commandeered _his_ car and his father. A fair trade, I believe…albeit a temporary one."

Jeff chuckled at the baffled expression on Scott's face. "John needed some time to himself after the funeral," he explained. "Penny and I went to visit Jacob and when we got back we found that John, Parker and Penny's car were missing. There's nothing to worry about though, it sounds like they've just gone out to get some fresh air."

Scott nodded thoughtfully. "The funeral, that was this morning, wasn't it?" he asked quietly. "I still don't agree with you not letting me fly over for it but as it turns out, you made the right call…as usual. It was…well, I think it was for the best that I was here."

Scott frowned and scrubbed his hands through his hair. Jeff was protective of all his boys but was particularly paranoid when it came to Gordon's health and wellbeing. Scott knew that Jeff would be upset when he found out what had happened during the rescue and he thought carefully about how to break the news to his father.

"Scott?" Jeff was becoming unnerved by Scott's unusually anxious body language. "Scott, just tell me what happened."

"You saw the state Gordon was in?" Scott waited for Jeff to nod before he continued. "Well that was a direct result of today's rescue." Scott paused as he shook his head. "Actually, no, that's not strictly true. It's a combination of what happened on the rescue and Alan's…um…interference. We had a report that the Finley Weston monitoring station in Antarctica had received a mayday from one of its research vessels. Apparently the ship had been damaged in recent storms and had been limping home when it suddenly started taking on water. The air/sea rescue services couldn't reach it because of its location so they called us for help. Gordon flew out in One without any problems but unfortunately the boat had slipped under the ice by the time Virgil got there with Two and Four. None of us, Alan included, thought that he had the necessary experience to take Four down under the ice so Gordon took her instead. There were six people on the ship, trapped in two separate air pockets and Gordon cut his way through the hull so they could get access to Four's air lock. He could only take them up two at a time so he had to make three trips back up to the surface but he eventually got everyone out. They were all suffering from exposure to the freezing water and it'll take some time for them to recover completely but every one of them will live to fight another day, thanks, mainly, to Gordon."

Jeff nodded, "Another successful mission with no loss of life. That's good." He smiled and then frowned. "But how does what you've just told me equate to Gordon being so…off? Also, it doesn't explain why Gordon told me that you're trying to hunt Alan down or why you apparently feel the need to maim said youngest brother."

"Alan?" Scott replied with a grimace. "Oh, yeah, there's a good reason for that. Gordon had some…um…trouble when he tried to hand over the final two crewmen. He'd pulled Four up alongside the monitoring station's second research ship, just like he'd done twice before, and he was offloading the first of his passengers when one of them slipped as she started to climb up the ladder. Gordon made a grab for her and stopped her from falling but unfortunately she panicked. She yanked herself out of Gordon's grasp and swung herself up the ladder before he could stop her and in doing so she unbalanced him."

Scott leaned forwards and looked earnestly into the screen. "Dad, he was just wearing his normal uniform with his jacket on top. He didn't have any cold weather gear or his wetsuit or anything like that on but Virgil said he went literally head over heels straight into the water. He was only in there for a few moments because the remaining crewman on Four pulled him out but he still got _very_ wet and _very_ cold. He insisted on putting Four back in the pod himself and by the time Virgil got him stripped off in Two's sick bay he was blue and shivering so badly that he could barely talk. Virg dried him off and put him in some warm, dry clothes but he wouldn't let him fly home."

Jeff nodded, fully agreeing with Virgil's decision.

"Alan brought One back," Scott continued. "…while Gordon came home in the cockpit of Two so Virg could keep an eye on him. He admitted, after they got back, that he'd swallowed a mouthful or two of sea water and that he didn't feel altogether well. He seemed to improve during the afternoon until Alan decided to make him a coffee. I think he must've gone onto autopilot or something 'cos he made that disgusting full-strength caffeinated sludge that he always drinks. You know, what I mean, the stuff that neither Gordon nor John can cope with? Well he made a mug for him and a mug for Gordon and I don't know whether he was trying to be polite or if it was because he wasn't feeling right but Gordon drunk it. He drunk all of it and it stayed put for all of five minutes. Dad, Gordy flew two birds today and single-handedly rescued six people before being submerged in ice-cold water. He was over tired and under the weather and the last thing he needed was a vomit-inducing caffeine rush. For that reason…and that reason only, I am going to track down Alan. The little bas…ket case disappeared the moment Gordon started turning green and no-one's seen him since. I know he'll come back if the alarm goes off but I don't think we'll be seeing him again until morning if it doesn't."

Penelope had been listening to Scott's dialogue and watching Jeff's reaction to what he was hearing. "Scott," she said quietly. "It doesn't sound like it was Alan's intention to make Gordon ill. The boy may be a little immature at times but he's never deliberately cruel. I'm sure it was a genuine mistake."

Jeff nodded slowly. "I agree with Penny," he said. "Alan's grown up a lot over the past couple of years and I have to say that he's unwittingly poisoned John with that damn coffee enough times that he fully understands the reaction it causes. There is absolutely no way he would have given it to Gordon if he'd thought about what he was doing and I'd imagine he was pretty upset when he realised what he'd done."

Scott thought for a moment and a guilty look crossed his face. "I…I guess he could have been," he replied. "I didn't really get a good look at him before he fled. Me and Virg were kind of busy trying to get Gordy to the bathroom before he hurled on the carpet." Scott wrinkled his nose in disgust. "Oh, and we failed, in case you were wondering."

Jeff looked over at Penelope and grinned. "I think Penny would have preferred to remain oblivious to that fact," he said with a chuckle. "So, was he very sick?"

Scott nodded. "The poor guy stayed hunched over the pan for a good half an hour before he finally calmed down and he fell asleep on the sofa not long afterwards. He was still there when I went out to look for Alan and I guess he must have woken up when you called."

"I think you might be right," Jeff agreed. "It took a long time for the call to be answered in the first place and Gordon was clearly not right from the moment he pressed the button. He took a tumble and went down hard, Scott and I'd feel happier if someone stayed with him tonight. Onaha or Kyrano will help out if you ask them to. Also, it might be worth sending Virgil out to try and get Alan back. Chances are he won't have any luck but at least Alan will know that you tried."

Scott nodded again. "OK, Dad. I'll do that. Virg never came back so I think he must have made his own decision to sit with Gordon. I'm going to go and find Onaha. She knows that Gordon wasn't well earlier 'cos she helped us clean up after him but I want to warn her that we might need her during the night."

Penelope leaned towards the screen. "I was going to ask to speak to Tin-Tin but under the circumstances I think I may forgo the pleasure. I think it's probably safe to assume that she's the only person who knows exactly where Alan is at the present time and I wouldn't feel right taking the boy's support away when he needs it most."

The guilty look passed across Scott's face again and he frowned as he stood up. "I'm going to see Onaha and then I'll go and send Virg out to look for Alan. I'll speak to you soon, Penny…and you tomorrow, Dad. Bye"


	54. Chapter 54

~#~ (Chapter 54)

Jeff let out a long, low groan and buried his face in his hands. Penelope hesitated for a brief moment and then moved to comfort him. She perched on the edge of the desk, tugged him towards her and pulled him into a gentle embrace. They remained that way, with Penelope cradling Jeff's head, until they heard Parker's voice in the adjoining room bidding John a pleasant evening.

Jeff pushed himself upright, clambered to his feet and then reached down to capture Penny's left hand. He then put the hand to his lips and placed a kiss against the delicate knuckles. "Thank you," he said quietly. "…and I'm sorry…for everything."

"Anytime, my dear." Penelope brought her free hand up and gently stroked his cheek. "…but Jeff, you don't need to apologise. We've known each other far too long for all that."

Jeff gave a sad smile. "I know what you mean," he replied. "…but even still, you didn't need to hear all that from Scott. He could easily have left out some of the…um…less relevant details."

"Scott's just a little stressed at the moment but you know as well as I do that hold it all together until you get back." Penny leant across and kissed him on the forehead. "Jeff dear, are you sure there's no way you can spare him to come here? Once you're home, maybe? By the time you get back he'll have been running both International Rescue and Tracy Industries for the best part of two weeks and he's going to be ready for a break. If he's actually going to rest then he's going to have to leave the island and surely here, with John, is as good a place as any."

Jeff sighed. "It's something I've been thinking about for a couple of days, Penny. Scott…well, he didn't react well to my not allowing him to attend the funeral. He argued that Johnny would need more support than I could give him on my own and he was most upset when he found out that I'd invited what he called 'a group of strangers' to be there when he felt that I had deliberately excluded him." Jeff shook his head. "The instances where Scott stands up and tells me I'm wrong are few and far between but I can tell you he's come pretty close over the past few days."

"Scott's conflicted, that's all." Penelope smiled and patted the side of Jeff's face. "He wants to support John but isn't being given the chance because he's stuck on the island with the other three. Add to that the fact that he's equivalently grounded at the moment, he's coordinating all the rescues from your desk instead of in the field…so you can hardly blame the poor boy for being a little out of sorts, now can you?"

Jeff shook his head and then jumped slightly as a gentle tap on the bathroom door heralded John's arrival. The young man pushed the door open and started to walk towards him before he registered that Penelope was even there. His brain eventually caught up with his eyes and he stopped suddenly when he realised how close together Jeff and Penny were standing. Penny's right hand was resting on Jeff's shoulder and the pair were holding hands.

"Um…hi," he said hesitantly as he looked from one of them to the other. "Sorry, I just wanted to tell you I'm back. Um…I guess I'll be next door if you need me."

Jeff detangled his hand from Penelope's and shot forward to grab John's arm. "Oh, no you don't," he chuckled. "You're staying right here where I can see you. Where have you been? I was worried when we got back and you'd gone."

John patted the arm that had grabbed him and Jeff let him go. "I told Uncle Jo that I was going out with Parker. I knew he'd be the first person you'd turn to when you realised that I wasn't there so I made sure he knew, at least roughly, where I was. You did ask him…didn't you?"

Jeff nodded. "I did," he replied. "Although all he really told me was that Parker had virtually force fed you lunch and then taken you out in the car. Does that sound about right?"

John dropped his eyes to the carpet and smiled self-consciously. "I wouldn't go quite as far as saying 'force fed', more like he bullied me into it. I'd almost forgotten how he gets sometimes. He knew I wanted to go out so he promised if I ate something he'd take me to a beach that some of the staff here had told him about." He raised his eyes and gazed at Jeff. "Dad, you wouldn't believe the place. If you could lay all the beaches from home end to end ten times over then it still wouldn't cover it. He knew exactly what I needed and stayed with the car so I could have some space. Other than the odd aircraft it was quiet and empty and it felt like I was the only person around for miles. It was just…perfect."

John stopped and grimaced. "Ugh, that makes me sound like a sad, lonely old hermit. I spend so much time on my own that I sometimes forget what hard work it is having people around you constantly. I'm digging myself into a hole here, aren't I? Shutting up now." John made a zipping motion across his mouth and fell quiet.

Jeff patted him on the shoulder and pushed him towards Penelope who pulled him into a gentle hug. He returned the hug and then pulled away and looked appraisingly at both Jeff and Penny.

"Is everything OK?" he asked. "Only it kind of looked like I might have been interrupting a…um…moment when I came in."

Jeff burst out laughing as Penelope punched John hard on the shoulder and John looked at him in confusion. "Ow," he said, turning back to Penelope. "What was that for? I was only asking in case you wanted me to leave the two of you alone."

Jeff pulled John out of Penny's reach and pressed him down until he was sitting on the bed. "It's just that you're not the first person today who's insinuated that there's something going on between Penny and myself. You lot are far too hasty to jump to the wrong conclusions and more to the point, if there was something going on, which there isn't, then it would be none of your business anyway."

John held up both hands in a placating gesture. "Whoa, whoa, I was only asking…not prying, judging or…or casting aspersions. I was just asking in case you wanted me to make myself scarce. You've got to admit that what I walked into looked somewhat…um…intimate."

"It wasn't intimate, John, dear," Penelope replied with an exasperated shake of her head. "It was caring. Jeff called the island and found out that the boys went on a rescue today. Things didn't quite go one hundred percent to plan but Gordon's safe and pretty much well again now. I think it suffices to say that things were a little fraught for a while and that tension levels on the island are still running high this evening."

"Dad," John queried. "What happened? Is his back alright?"

Jeff leant a hand down and squeezed John's shoulder. "His back's fine," he replied. "He took a tumble off the side of Four and ended up in the sea just off Antarctica. The boys brought him home and he was recovering nicely when Alan, for whatever reason, plied him with some of that gut-rot coffee of his. Well, I won't go into details but what followed wasn't pleasant. It took Scott, Virgil and Onaha to sort Gordon out again and somehow during the course of all that, Scott managed to drive Alan from the house. He's gone to ground somewhere and neither Scott nor Virgil know where. Penny has a theory that Tin-Tin probably knows where he is but I doubt either of them will think to ask her."

John nodded and then winced. "What a day," he muttered. "And I don't think I'm going to get to see Jacob now either. By the time I get there it'll be time to leave. He'll think he's been abandoned."

"He'll think no such thing," Jeff said with a chuckle. "He's had visitors today because Penny and I spent the afternoon with him. Other than missing his daddy and maybe being a bit more cuddly than normal, he's fine."

John seemed placated by this and nodded gently. "That's good, although I still feel bad for not visiting him myself. I'll go and see him first thing in the morning and see if they'll let me get him up, dressed and breakfasted on my own. Do either of you have any particular plans for tomorrow?"

Jeff shook his head. "Joel's flying out tomorrow afternoon so I thought we might have lunch together but other than I have no firm plans. Penny?"

"Parker and I will be travelling to Bonga Bonga in two days time," she replied. "…and tomorrow will be spent shopping. John has kindly filled me in on some of the darling little shops in the area and I feel it would be remiss of me not to take a look while I'm here."

Jeff met John's eyes and the pair smiled. Shopping was one of Penelope's favourite pastimes and the opportunity to discover some 'new' quaint little olde-worlde shops was too tempting for her to pass up.

"Ah, Penny, that reminds me," Jeff said suddenly. "He doesn't know it yet but I'm going to be sending Alan shopping. Jacob's going to need furniture and the house needs stocking with…well basically everything a young boy needs. Would you mind if we use Bonga Bonga as a dropping off point? Some items will probably need to be delivered and obviously that just doesn't work living where we do."

Penelope nodded. "Oh, I wouldn't mind at all," she replied. "I'm intending to stay there for a couple of weeks myself. Autumn is just so damp and dreary in England and it's nice to be able to get away from it occasionally."

Jeff nodded. "Well, don't be surprised if you have house guests at some point. I'm sending Alan along with Tin-Tin and Onaha. It will leave us a little short on bodies, especially if Scott comes over. Well, we'll just have to make do…somehow."

"If Scott comes over?" John repeated and then his eyes lit up as he realised what he'd said. "Scott's coming here? Alright! When was that decided? You said you wouldn't let him come and that he had to hold the fort while you were away. What changed?"

"Nothing's changed, as such," Jeff replied. "It's just that my eyes have been opened to how these past few weeks have been affecting your brother. You know how desperately Scott wanted to be here this morning and you know as well as I do that he _really_ didn't appreciate being forced to stay on the island. Well, while Scott was still smarting over not being allowed to come here, Gordon took his tumble into the sea and Scott then had two brothers that needed him and he wasn't able to be there for either of them. He had to wait until everyone got back to see for himself that Gordon was alright and I can't begin to describe how difficult that is. John, Scott is stressed, tired, worried and, if I'm completely truthful, he's probably not my greatest fan at the moment. I know I said he couldn't leave the island while I'm away and I still hold to that so I'm going to suggest that I swap with him. Jo flies out tomorrow, Penny the day after and I thought I might go the day after that. If Scott leaves once I'm underway then you'll only have a short time here on your own and the desk won't be unmanned for too long. If something happens during that time then Kyrano will just have to look after things while the boys go out. He's done it before, on occasion, and he's more than capable."

John nodded. "I take it Scott doesn't know about this yet?"

Jeff shook his head. "No," he replied. "…and I'm not phoning him again today. Scott will more than likely sit with Gordon for the rest of the night and knowing Virgil he may do so as well. Alan is who-knows-where but certainly out of reach of the phone and there's no point me speaking to Grandma, Kyrano, Onaha or Tin-Tin when it's Scott that I need."

"True," John said with a shrug. "Aw, it's not like I'm trying to get rid of you or anything, Dad, but I can't wait. Scott's been itching to get his hands on Jacob since that first night I spoke to him and now he's going to get the chance. This is going to be great. I'm going to wash up for dinner. I'll be back in a bit."

John leapt to his feet and shot back through the bathroom door before either Jeff or Penelope had the chance to reply.

"Well," Penny said with a laugh. "That certainly cheered him up. I only hope that Scott takes the news just as well."

Jeff joined her as she laughed. "Oh, he will, Penny. Mark my words, he will."


	55. Chapter 55

~#~ (Chapter 55)

Apart from a short break to see Joel off at the airport, John spent the whole of the next day at the hospital. Penelope appeared mid afternoon with a huge bag of toys and games that she distributed among the various patients in the nursery and also the children's wards. By the time she left, just before dinner, she was thoroughly exhausted but claimed to have not had so much fun in years.

~#~

Penny and Parker flew out on schedule the day after. Jeff and John went to the airport and watched until the pink plane disappeared from view.

John let out a heavy sigh and leant against Jeff. "And then there were two," he said softly. "Well technically I suppose there's three but you know what I mean."

Jeff nodded and hooked an arm across John's shoulders. "You're worried about tomorrow," he commented. "You'll only be on your own for a couple of hours and I'm sure that having Scott here will more than make up for it afterwards. Don't be surprised if he comes bearing gifts from home, by the way. I know for a fact that Mother's been baking so no doubt she'll be loading the plane down with edibles for the pair of you."

John nodded and then grinned. "I'll bet she's done my blueberry pie. I didn't get it when I came down because we left so quickly. Mind you, I suppose she didn't have any warning that I'd be coming back so she wouldn't have had any ready anyway. Aw, man, now I want pie!"

Jeff chuckled at his son. John had successfully steered the conversation away from the unpleasant thought of being left alone and onto the much more pleasant one of what goodies Scott might bring with him the next day.

"Right then," he said with a smile. "Pie it is. I can't guarantee blueberry and I certainly can't guarantee Grandma-quality but pie you shall have. To the coffee shop we go."

~#~

John was quiet over breakfast the next morning and admitted that, once Jeff left, he was going to hide out at the hospital until it was time to meet Scott at the airport. He waved Jeff away with instructions to let him know when he got home and asked him to remind Scott to signal when he was getting close.

Scott's signal came as John was cleaning Jacob up after his dinner. His watch beeped three times in quick succession and then fell silent again. "That's your Uncle Scott," John told Jacob and then grimaced as he discovered a lump of carroty goo in the little boy's ear. "He'll be here soon and you can meet him in the morning. Let's finish getting you sorted and then I can go and get him."

~#~

Scott taxied his sleek, black jet into the hangar where it would remain for the duration of his stay in Tasmania. He had a brief radio conversation with the airport staff who would be looking after the plane in his absence and then made the appropriate notes in his flight log as he waited for everything to finish powering down.

He spotted John, who was waiting at the back of the hangar, as soon as he stepped out of the plane. He waved at him cheerily and by the time he reached the bottom of the steps John was there to meet him.

He hesitated uncertainly when Scott reached out to him and then relaxed when he found himself dragged into a bone-crushing hug. He smiled against Scott's shoulder, wrapped his arms around him and returned the hug, just as tightly.

The two men remained in their embrace for a time until Scott pulled backwards and took a long appraising look at his brother. "Scott, I'm fine," John told him with a chuckle. "You don't need to worry, I've been well looked after. Between them, Dad, Uncle Jo and Parker have made sure I've eaten and slept and have accompanied me to pretty much every appointment I've had over the past few weeks. Parker even took me to the beach a couple of days ago."

Scott grinned. "As if you don't see the beach often enough when you're at home."

"Apart from the fact that I'm not there most of the time, you'll never see a beach like this one at home," John replied with a smirk. "It's…well, immense is the only word I can think of that might just about cover it. We can go for a run there one of the mornings. Not tomorrow though, I've promised Jacob he'll get to meet his biggest and baddest uncle first thing tomorrow morning."

Scott chuckled. "I suppose that would be right," he said. "You couldn't exactly call Gordy 'big, nor Virg 'bad'…and as for the little twerp…"

"See, that's just what I said. Big, bad Uncle Scott," John replied. "I take it you didn't manage to find Alan the other night?"

"Not exactly…no." Scott dropped his gaze to the floor for a moment before raising it again to meet John's. "He's, well, he's obviously got sneakier recently. Sneakier than we've given him credit for, anyway. John, I sat with Gordy while Virgil went out to look for Alan. When he gave up and came back in we stayed in Gordon's room and eventually fell asleep on the chairs. At some point during the night, without waking any of us, Alan came in, climbed onto the bed and fell asleep. Virg was awake and watching over everyone when I woke up and the others were sleeping peacefully so we left them to it. By the time they finally got up everything was pretty much back to normal."

"That's good," John agreed. "So everyone's all OK now? You're here, Dad's there and…has anyone told Alan about the shopping trip yet?"

Scott snorted out a laugh. "Oh yeah," he replied. "That didn't go down well at first, as you'd imagine. I ended up dragging him away from the phone so he didn't say something he'd live to regret. I had to tell him to stop and think about what he was being offered before he turned it down flat and then had to explain that he was being given the chance to have some time off the island with Tin-Tin. The great dolt still didn't get it until I pointed out, in very simple terms, that they wouldn't be shopping the _whole_ time they were there. Strangely enough his attitude changed rather rapidly after that and he, Tin-Tin and Onaha flew out before I did. I have to say that it was weird leaving the hangar with only one half-way decent plane in it."

"I'm sure," John agreed with a chuckle. "But don't let Virgil hear you speaking about his baby like that. Just because it's older and less powerful than that beast of yours, it doesn't make it any less of a plane."

"If you say so," Scott replied and then slung an arm around John's shoulder and turned back towards his jet. "Now, are we going to stand around here all day or are you going to help me get unloaded. I don't know how many of us Grandma thought she needed to cater for but she's sent enough stuff to feed a small army. Oh, and yes, before you ask, she sent your pie. I had to delay leaving because it was still baking. It literally went from the oven, straight into one of Three's heatproof boxes and then onto the plane. With any luck it should still be pretty toasty by the time we get back to the hotel."

"Alright, Grandma," John grinned. "I knew she wouldn't forget. Come on then, let's get unloaded."

John jogged out of the hangar and then returned with the rental car. He parked it alongside the jet and the two brothers made light work of loading it up with the food, the bags containing Scott's clothes and those holding John's clothing which had been washed and pressed since Jeff had taken it home.

John drove Scott the short distance back to the hotel and very soon everything had been unloaded into what was now Scott's room. Jeff had arranged for the room to be serviced between him leaving it and Scott 'moving in' and John discovered, when he went back to his room, that his had been refreshed as well. The untouched boxes from Rosie's apartment still sat along one wall in Scott's room but he refrained from commenting, having been pre-warned by Jeff as to what they were.

After pie, talking, dinner, coffee and more talking, Scott and John retired for the evening.

~#~

John, unusually, woke before Scott the next morning. He got up and dressed and then decided to put away the clothes that Scott had brought for him. He chuckled to himself when he found assorted, seemingly random items, mingled in with the clothes and he realised that one of his younger brothers had intercepted the bag between it being packed and being loaded onto the plane.

As he found each item John laid it on the desk and by the time he'd finished unpacking he'd come to the conclusion that the culprit had to be Gordon. The final haul of 'treasure' was made up of numerous Dinky toys, a cuddly blue frog, two sealed pots of sunburst-yellow paint, a plastic kaleidoscope and three small bags of sweets.

Scott, barefooted and wearing only a low-slung pair of lightweight, navy blue sweatpants, wandered in from the bathroom to find John standing at the window with the kaleidoscope to his eye. A half empty packet of M&Ms sat on the window ledge in front of him and as Scott watched he popped one in his mouth and hummed appreciatively.

Scott crept closer behind his brother and tapped him on the shoulder. "Mr Tracy," he said loudly. "Did your father never tell you that spying on the neighbours is wrong."

John yelped loudly and dropped the kaleidoscope. Scott snatched it from the air, before it could hit the floor and by the time John turned round and punched him on the shoulder he had put it safely on the table.

"Scott! Geez, man, what was that for?" John asked and then grinned at the triumphant look on Scott's face.

"Sorry, it was just too good an opportunity to turn down," Scott replied with a grin. "Your attention was taken completely by the sweets and that teeny, tiny telescope of yours and you had absolutely no clue I was there." Scott suddenly stopped and looked at his brother suspiciously. "You weren't really spying on the neighbours, were you?"

John punched him again and then looked around for the kaleidoscope. "As if," he said as he picked it up and handed it to Scott. "…but even if I wanted to I wouldn't get very far with this thing. Look."

Scott put the plastic tube up to his eye and laughed. "What the heck?" he asked. "I haven't seen one of these for years. Where'd you get it?"

John smiled and wafted his hands over the items on the table. "You brought it," he said with a laugh. "Along with all sorts of other…um…things."

"What? All these?" Scott squatted down and pushed a small, metal hovercraft across the tabletop with his finger. "Were these in with your clothes?"

John nodded. "I'm assuming they're gifts from Gordon," he replied. "Although I'm not sure on the whys or wherefores of the paint. I'm assuming that's Virgil's but somehow I doubt he knows that he sent it."

Scott picked up one of the pots of paint, looked at it and laughed. "It's not Virgil that's going to be missing this," he said. "I very much doubt that anyone will miss it at all but if anyone does then it'll be Brains, not Virg. It's touch-up, that's what this is. Touch-up for Four."

"Definitely Gordon then," John picked up the other pot and smiled. "Oh well, I don't know why I'd want paint but I suppose it's the thought that counts. Where do you reckon he got the other bits? Do you think he's got a box of weird stuff in his room?"

Scott snorted. "I wouldn't put it past him but no, I reckon he's been in the basement. He was probably looking for something else and then had the idea about your bag. He'd've had plenty of opportunities to mess it. Grandma's a dab hand at getting you all washed, pressed and packed away again in virtually no time at all so the bag's been ready for ages."

John nodded. "I know, she's being so good. I've bought myself a few bits but mostly I've coped fine with Dad running my stuff backwards and forwards. I'm just grateful that the hospital are happy to wash Jacob's clothes for me. He makes such a mess when he eats that he has to be changed several times every day."

"He's a boy," Scott pointed out. "He's supposed to be messy. He wouldn't be a proper Tracy if he stayed clean all the time either."

Scott spotted the odd look that passed briefly across John's face at that moment and guessed that the conversation had somehow run close to forbidden ground. Unsure as to what he'd said that was wrong he opted to change the subject completely. "So, apart from chocolate, I'm told there's a half way decent breakfast to be had somewhere around here?"

John reached over to the window ledge and shook the last few M&Ms into his hand. He took a couple of the sweets for himself and then held his hand out to Scott who took the remainder before tossing them in the air, one by one, and catching them in his mouth. John looked him up and down for a moment and chuckled. "You might want to put some clothes on first, unless you're planning on using room service."

Scott looked down at his bare chest and shrugged. "Fair enough," he replied. "Give me a minute."


	56. Chapter 56

~#~ (Chapter 56)

By the time John and Scott finally got to the hospital, Jacob was changed, clothed and fed. When they arrived he was sitting in the nursery's family room with one of the student nurses.

John introduced Scott to the staff and arranged for him to have full access to Jacob even if visiting alone. The nurse on duty told them where to find Jacob and then had to hurry away when someone called to her from across the room.

Scott followed John into the family room and spotted Jacob immediately. The little boy was sitting on the knee of a young woman with hair that had been dyed so deeply purple that it glowed in the sunlight that was flooding through the window. She had been reading Jacob a book and pointing at the pictures but as soon as John entered the room she lost his attention completely. John's approach was met with a squeal and a frantic waving of hands as the student nurse struggled to keep hold of the now squirming child. John reached down and swept Jacob out of her arms before he could fall and held him close. Jacob immediately burrowed into John's shirt and rubbed his face back and forth against the soft material.

John rested his cheek against Jacob's head and hugged him gently. "Did you miss me, little man?" he asked and then chuckled when Jacob let out a contented sigh. "I know," he whispered sadly. "I missed you too."

Scott had hung back to allow John to greet Jacob and he watched with interest as his brother grabbed and clung to the little boy. It was clear to him that the bond between father and son was already very strong and that the forced separation every evening was causing John, if not both of them, a great deal of emotional pain.

The young woman who had been reading to Jacob clambered to her feet and held a little pink bear out to Scott who took it from her. He held it up between a finger and thumb and wrinkled his nose. 'Pink.' He formed the word silently and the young woman smiled and held her hands up in a gesture that said 'don't ask me'. She then tilted her head in John's direction and smiled softly. Scott smiled too as he followed her gaze and then looked back and winked as she turned to leave. The young woman blushed furiously and scuttled from the room without looking back.

"Scott, behave." John's light-hearted words came quietly from behind him and Scott realised that he had automatically turned to watch as the girl left the room. He turned back towards John to find that he was being watched by two pairs of clear blue eyes. John had Jacob's head tucked close under his chin and the little boy was chewing on his fist as he snuggled against his father.

Scott ruffled John's hair and then squatted down slightly and lifted Jacob's arm so he could tuck the bear underneath. "Yours I believe," he said and then reached up and stroked the side of the little boy's face with the back of one finger. "Although I don't think much of the colour."

Jacob turned his face towards the gentle caress and gurgled quietly around his fist. Scott smiled tenderly and moved his finger to tickle under Jacob's chin.

"Scott, wait," John stopped him. "Everyone can see us. At least let's sit down."

Scott stood up and looked around, only to realise that they were the only ones not sitting on either the comfy padded chairs or the floor. No-one was paying them any attention despite the fact they were on full view but he shrugged and followed John's lead as his brother backed slowly towards the far corner where a selection of chairs sat around a low-level, circular, bright red table.

John adjusted his grip on Jacob and, using one hand for support, lowered himself into one of the chairs. Scott winced as he noticed that John had positioned himself so he had the table in front of him and his back towards everyone else in the room. Scott's military training simply wouldn't allow him to sit in such a vulnerable position so he sat on the table. This gave him clear access to John and Jacob while still allowing him full line of sight to the rest of the room.

"What was that about?" he asked quietly. "Yes, everyone could see us but no-one was even vaguely interested in who we were or what we were doing. They're here to visit their own little people, not to worry about what's going on over the other side of the room. Is that why you sat like this? To block them all out?"

John pulled Jacob closer against his chest and shook his head. He shrugged, shook his head again and then looked across at Scott with a lost expression on his face. "I don't come in here," he whispered. "I don't like it. It makes me feel inadequate. Look around, Scott. Every child in here has a mother, grandmother, aunt or some other female relation with them. When I come in here it brings home to me things that Jacob's never going to have. He'll never know what it's like to grow up in a normal family because…quite frankly, Scott, ours isn't. The female side is…well, it's not. It's dead and gone, either crumbled into ash or left behind in Kansas. In years to come, Jacob won't be able to look back and remember being cuddled by his mother or reminisce on when he hurt his knee and his grandmother kissed it better. He's not going to have any brothers or sisters to talk to and the chance of him having cousins anywhere near his own age currently stands at less than zero. All he's got is me and I feel like I'm being watched and appraised the whole time I'm in here. Jacob's my son and I can't spend time alone with him, I can't take him out of the hospital and even if I could, I can't take him home because it's not legal."

John's voice cracked slightly and a tear escaped from both his eyes. Scott scanned the room and was grateful to see that everyone was still minding their own business. He gently pulled John towards him and rested a hand on the side of his brother's face. "This isn't about the room at all, is it?" he asked. "This has been brewing for days but you've been unwilling to discuss it with Father in case you upset him. Johnny, bottling this up isn't going to do anyone any good, least of all you. You know better than that. Don't you?"

John shrugged and then let out a broken laugh when Jacob batted at Scott's arm with a sodden hand that had, just seconds before, been in his mouth.

Scott smiled and rested his other hand on the little boy's head before looking back at John. "Let's get out of here," he suggested. "Father says the garden's nice…peaceful too. We'll find somewhere quiet and then we can talk. Where do we get the wristband thingies from?"

John snorted at Scott's blasé description of the technology and quietly told him what he needed to do to get the three of them banded so they could go outside. Scott leant over and kissed Jacob gently on the forehead and then stood up. Aware that John was trusting him implicitly, he leant down and placed a kiss in his brother's hair as well. John flushed red and smiled as Scott turned towards the door.

~#~

Scott returned in a short time with blue bands for everyone. He also had a bottle of milk which he handed to John and very soon they were on their way downstairs.

The brothers found a quiet spot in the far corner of the garden, where two of the outside walls met. The flower beds along both walls stopped just short of the corner and the grass had been allowed to spill off the lawn and continued right up to the wall. A nearby tree shaded the area in dappled light and the air was quiet and still.

Scott dropped to the floor and sat with his back against one of the walls and then patted the ground to his right. John looked around and nodded approvingly before handing Jacob to Scott so he could lower himself to the floor. Scott handed the boy back as soon as John was settled and sat with his arm around John's shoulders as they enjoyed a rare moment of peace.

"So," Scott said, breaking the silence. "Where do you want to start? The family room and the reasons you don't like it?"

John shrugged. "As good a place as any," he replied. "I don't know why they put him in there today. He's only been in there once before, as far as I know. I was told I could use the room whenever I wanted so I took him in but it just made me realise what a weird life I'm going to be exposing my son to."

"That's a good start," Scott said with a nod. "Although your final point is completely irrelevant. If you don't like the room then fine, don't use it. Tell the nurses that it makes you feel uncomfortable. Tell them that they can take Jacob in there to play if they want but that you'd rather he didn't go in there when you're around. I'm pretty sure they're supposed to abide by your wishes, within reason anyway. Does that make sense?"

John nodded. "I guess," he replied. "But what if they ask why."

"Then you either tell them that it's because Jacob's mother's not around or you tell them to mind their own business and request that they don't question you about it again." Scott grinned and shook John lightly. "Although I wouldn't advise the second option unless you do it _really_ tactfully. You don't want to end up upsetting anyone…they're still looking after Jacob, after all."

John held a finger up and brushed at a piece of grass that had stuck to the side of Jacob's face. The little boy was peacefully chewing his bear while sitting on John's stomach with his back resting against his father's bent legs. "And that's another one of my many problems," John said quietly. "No-one has given me any sort of clue as to how long it will be before I can get Jacob out of here. I know I can't take him home yet but at least I could have him with me at the hotel. I've been taking things backwards and forwards so it's not a complete shock for him but no-one's even made any comment about me taking him out of here recently."

"Whoa, whoa. Rewind a bit there, Johnny." Scott drew several big anticlockwise circles in the air with his left hand and laughed when he realised that Jacob was watching him. "We didn't cover the second part of the first problem yet. The 'weird life' bit. Yes our life is…um…unusual but you don't _really_ believe that's a problem, do you?"

John frowned and looked at his brother incredulously. "Of course I do," he replied. "There's no way that a child can grow up on an island with such a select bunch of secretive people and actually stand any chance of turning out normal."

Scott snorted and flicked John's ear with the hand that was draped over his shoulder. "Not to use your words or anything but 'of course they can'. I can name two who have, anyway. One," he paused and held up his index finger. "Gordon. And two," he held up the middle finger as well. "Alan. They may be younger than us and drive us completely crazy at times but as far as I'm aware they've turned out pretty normal, bearing in mind some of the things they're asked to do on a daily basis. Johnny, Alan's your little buddy, your soul mate and your surrogate son, all rolled into one. You practically raised the guy and if he's turned out OK then there's a damn good chance that this little fellow will too." Scott's voice turned slightly silly towards the end of the sentence as he made the 'one, two' fingers walk in mid air until they reached Jacob's chest. The little boy giggled infectiously as he was tickled and John couldn't help but laugh along with him.


	57. Chapter 57

~#~ (Chapter 57)

Scott squeezed John's shoulder and pulled him closer. "That's better," he said. "Much more like the Johnny I came to see. Now, can I ask a question before we begin part two of 'Tracy trouble in Tasmania'?"

John snorted and raised an eyebrow. "You've been waiting to say that, haven't you?" he asked. "But there's no way you thought it up. It's got a definite ring of Gordon about it."

Scott shook his head. "You'd think so, wouldn't you?" he said with a laugh. "Strangely though, it was Virg that came up with it. Rather randomly at the dinner table, in fact. One minute we were eating and the next he just sort of blurted it out. You should have seen his face, it was a picture. Once the shock wore off I think he was actually quite pleased with himself. You know how he is; the strangest of things will tickle his fancy."

"Ain't that the truth?" John agreed with a grin and then leaned back against the wall and pinned Scott's arm behind his neck. He closed his eyes and sat there for a moment until he realised that Scott wasn't talking. He opened his eyes and looked over at his brother. "You were supposed to be asking me a question," he prompted. "At least, that's what you said. Did you change your mind?"

"No," Scott replied. "I was just thinking. I don't want to upset you but I have a feeling that what I'm going to say might do so." John frowned slightly and then shrugged so he continued. "This…um…thing about leaving him here…leaving Jacob here, I mean…" He stopped and waved at Jacob and then past him to where the hospital building was hidden. "It hurts. It hurts you badly. I could see that this morning, as clear as anything. The moment you saw him you had to have him in your arms and once he was there you couldn't put him down. In fact apart from a brief moment, when I had my hands on him for barely thirty seconds, you still haven't put him down. You miss him when you're not here and I'm guessing you feel guilty when you're not here but you could be? Am I making sense?"

John nodded slowly and adjusted his hold on Jacob so the little boy was resting against his chest. "You're right," he agreed. "It hurts more than you could know. To have to leave him at the end of the day so someone else can get him ready for bed…so someone else can read his bedtime story and cuddle him until he settles. To not have to get up in the night when his sleep is disturbed or be able to watch as he wakes up in the morning. Yes, it hurts a lot…it's not right and it's not fair."

"No," Scott said softly. "No it's not but I'll bet you haven't actually asked anyone about getting him out of here? I know you, Johnny, you're no good at asking for what you want and you never want to rock the boat. Maybe everyone thinks you're happy with how things are. Maybe they think you don't want to get him discharged until you can take him home. Maybe…"

"How could anyone think that?" John's voice broke loudly across Scott's. "He's my son. I wouldn't leave him here unless I had no other choice. I…I…"

"Hey," Scott interrupted John this time. "I'm not saying you would. I wouldn't be happy about leaving him either. I'm just trying to point out what some people might think. If you haven't told anyone that you're not happy with how things are then how are they supposed to know?"

John frowned. "You knew," he argued. "You'd been here all of two minutes before you worked it out."

Scott shook John lightly. "That's 'cos I know you," he said. "…probably better than just about anyone…anywhere. What I don't understand is why Father hasn't said anything."

John blinked slowly as he thought back over the past few days. "Other than when he came to say goodbye to Jacob I don't think we've been here together since before the funeral. I…I don't suppose I've really been myself since we got here so maybe he just thought I was being…I don't know, flaky, stressed, overwhelmed or…something."

"And not without good reason," Scott replied and smiled sadly. "You've had a flaky, stressful, overwhelming couple of weeks. He still should have said something."

"Scott, don't," John said quietly. "This hasn't been easy for him either. He's been practically holding me together since we got here and I've still managed to break down on him several times. As well as looking after a slightly crazy son, he's had to coordinate with Joel and Alex and he's made all the arrangements for Rosie and the funeral."

Scott shook John again. "OK, I get the point," he said. "…but enough with the 'crazy'. I though we'd settled on flaky, stressed and overwhelmed. Now, apart from this," Scott tapped gently on Jacob's cast. "…is there any reason you know of why this little chap has got to stay here…and by here I mean there," he pointed in the direction of the hospital, "…and not here, as in here in the garden."

"I knew what you meant," John replied with a chuckle. "…but no. Apart from his arm, everything else is fine. This," John gently run his finger across the pink line on Jacob's cheek. "…and this," he pointed to the mark on Jacob's forehead. "…are pretty much completely healed and fading nicely. He's still got a bandage around his leg but it's lightweight, a bit like an ace bandage, and mainly there just to stop him scratching. He eats well, drinks loads and unless someone's sticking needles in him, he's pretty much angelic."

Scott laughed and squeezed John's shoulder. "So, if I agree to investigate busting the little guy out of here are you going to let me have a cuddle?"

John grinned and leant his head against the hand which was resting on his shoulder. "I thought we were already having one."

Scott freed his hand and gently slapped the side of John's head. "Not you," he said jokingly as he pulled his arm out from behind John and rotated his shoulder until it popped. "I've had enough of cuddling you; it's your son's turn now."

John raised an eyebrow and snorted. "Well now, how could I turn a request like that down…seeing as you asked so nicely?"

Jacob grumbled as John peeled the little boy away from his chest. "I know, baby. You were all warm and cosy and meany Daddy disturbed you," he murmured. "But your Uncle Scott's come a long way to see you and he wants a snuggle. I promise that he'll be just as comfy as me." He kissed Jacob firmly on the cheek and then blushed when he remembered that Scott could hear him. "Be good," he muttered and then raised himself to his knees so he could lean over and place his son in Scott's awaiting arms.

Scott's eyes went soft as he wrapped his arms securely around the little boy. "Hello there," he whispered. "You're the teeny, tiny person that I've heard so much about, are you? I'm Scott and you…well, you're just too darn cute to be true. You've already got your granddad wrapped around one of those tiny little pinky fingers of yours and I dare say you'll have your great-grandma wrapped around the other one, just as soon as she gets her hands on you." Jacob looked up at his uncle, smiled and cooed quietly. Scott looked towards at John and grinned. "You forget just how small they start out," he said and then lifted Jacob up slightly before settling him down again. "…and also, how little they weigh." Scott adjusted his grip so he could stroke Jacob's cheek with his thumb. "Because you really don't weigh much, do you, eh? Not very much at all."

John shook his head gently as Scott chattered away to his nephew. "He weighs almost exactly what he should," he said. "The hospital has had his birth records sent over and he was on about the fortieth percentile when he was born. He's still in about the same place now and everyone seems to agree that's a good thing. They're perfectly happy with his weight, his size and how he's eating even though the general consensus is that he hadn't been started on solids before the nurses here tried him with them."

Scott looked thoughtful. "But he'd been cared for properly?" he asked cautiously.

"Yes," John replied. "Oh yes. Virtually everything Rosie ever bought for Jacob was at least second hand but he was well looked after. I've been thinking and I reckon she must have gone second hand purely to make her money last longer while at the same time making sure Jacob had everything he needed. The clothes he was brought here in were clean and had obviously been pressed before he was dressed in them that morning. Although he hadn't been weaned he'd been well nourished."

Scott nodded. "That's good to know. It sounds like Rosie was doing the best she could in the…um…circumstances that she found herself in."

John shrugged and nodded vaguely, not too sure of how to answer. After a moment he attempted to continue what he'd been saying. "As far as we can tell, the only thing that had been bought brand new for Jacob was his car seat. Whether Rosie was given it, whether she bought it before her money started to run low or if she splashed out because it was a vital safety item, I'll never know. Whatever the reason I thank God she did because, in the end, it probably saved his life."

Scott frowned, struggling to follow the sudden change of topic. "OK," he said carefully. "But I'm pretty sure that a hospital wouldn't discharge a newborn baby if their parent didn't have the appropriate safety seat to take them home in. She may have had one before Jacob was born or she may have had to get one in a hurry before they'd let her take him home."

"I…I suppose so," John replied quietly. "Although he wasn't born in a hospital. She…Rosie was being cared for in a women's refuge. I don't know any details and I only know that much because the authorities had to find out where he was registered in order to get a copy of his birth certificate."

"Why did they need a copy?" Scott queried. "What happened to the original?"

John shrugged. "No-one knows. Rosie had a dresser full of paperwork in her apartment and by the state it was in when I saw it, it was obvious that the police searched through it pretty thoroughly. At some point, between the accident and my receiving the letter, they had managed to track down the details of his birth and get hold of the copy of the certificate. Scott, you should probably know that he wasn't registered as a Tracy. I was always on the certificate as his father but Rosie didn't give him my name. I've…I've had the details changed so he's legally a Tracy now and when it finally arrives, his passport will be in the name of Jacob Tracy as well."

"I understand," Scott replied quietly. "If I was in your situation I'd have probably done the same thing. I'd want my son to carry my name. Grandma married into it and even Tin-Tin's probably…er…hopefully going to become a Tracy at some point too." Scott stopped and shook himself. "Sorry, that's not relevant to anything, I got a little sidetrack…"

Jacob suddenly threw his bear aside and let out a high-pitched squeal. Scott gently lifted him and laid him across his chest so the little boy's head was resting on his shoulder. He then patted him gently on the back and spoke quietly. "Hey, there, what was that all about?" he asked. "I know poor Bear's a yucky pink colour but I don't think he deserved that."

Jacob locked his little blue eyes on Scott's face and let out a sob before sticking his fist in his mouth and chewing on it.

Scott laughed and stroked away the two angry lines that had appeared on the little boy's forehead. "Well, for someone who can't talk, you're certainly good at getting your point across." He looked across at John who already had the bottle in his hand. "Johnny, can I?"

John looked undecided but Jacob had spotted the bottle and wasn't prepared to wait. The little boy used his blue cast-covered arm to smack Scott squarely on the chin and then removed the fist from his mouth and wailed loudly. John hastily passed the bottle to his brother who slid Jacob back onto his lap before carefully popping the teat into his mouth.

The wailing stopped immediately and was replaced with little contented noises as Jacob suckled happily on the bottle. Scott leant back against the wall and turned to look at John with a smile. "So. He doesn't make much noise but if he's not happy with something or there's something he wants then he makes damn sure you know all about it? You do realise you've created Alan the Second, don't you?"

John nodded. "I know," he said. "I warned you he turned into a little angry Alan if you upset him…or was that when I was talking to Gordon? I can't remember now."

Scott nodded. "It was me," he agreed. "Or maybe it was both of us…Hey, when did you get to speak to Gordy? And why did I never hear about it?"

John snorted. "You don't know about it 'cos you weren't there. It was the night…er…morning before I spoke to all of you together and you'd taken Tin-Tin to collect Brains from Penny's. I called to speak to Father but ended up talking to Gordon for ages first. He was rambling on about escorting Dad back home but I have to admit that I couldn't make sense of everything he was trying to tell me."

Jacob drained the last few drops of milk from the bottle and started sucking on air so Scott gently prised the teat from his mouth. He laid Jacob back across his chest, patted him on the back and chuckled when the little boy belched loudly over his shoulder. "Don't make a mess back there," he said quietly. "I left my spare clothes in the car and I won't fit in any of your Dad's."

"No," John replied with a chuckle. "But you would fit in _your_ Dad's. He left a couple of spare shirts in Jacob's room so he couldn't be caught out. They're on the bottom shelf of the cupboard by the window, incase you need them."

Scott nodded and then realised that Jacob had relaxed completely against him. He couldn't see the little boy's face because the back of Jacob's head was resting against the left hand side of his neck. "Johnny, I think he's asleep," he whispered.

John leaned over to see that Jacob was fast asleep with the thumb of his right hand in his mouth. A line of drool was running down the little boy's arm and John smiled when he realised that it was gradually mingling with the soft fibres of Scott's shirt. "Yeah, he's asleep," he said. "…and just so you're pre-warned, you're going to want to borrow one of Dad's shirts."

Scott let out an amused snort. "I can handle that," he replied and wriggled carefully until he was leaning more comfortably against the wall. He nodded his head gently to the right and held his arm out until John took the hint and slipped back into the space he'd previously been sitting in. Scott pulled him close and kissed his hair before letting out a deep, satisfied sigh.


	58. Chapter 58

~#~ (Chapter 58)

The brothers remained in the calm, tranquil atmosphere of the garden and spoke quietly about a range of subjects until Jacob woke up nearly an hour later. Once he was awake he was in need of a change so they took him back to his room. John sorted Jacob out while Scott found himself one of Jeff's shirts to change into. Kathy, who had come on duty during the morning, offered to give Jacob his lunch and John surprised his brother by accepting.

They left Jacob with the nurse and went downstairs in search of food. After eating, they went back upstairs, signed Jacob out again and John took the pair of them on a tour of the hospital.

The three of them spent the rest of the afternoon in the nursery until it was time for Jacob's dinner. They took him down to the cafeteria to eat and by the time he'd finished, Scott understood why John had accepted Kathy's offer to feed the little boy earlier in the day.

Between them John and Scott gave Jacob a bath and then handed the very tired and sleepy baby back to Kathy so she could put him to bed. Scott borrowed another of Jeff's shirts while John changed into one of his spares and the two brothers went back to their hotel.

~#~

John woke up at ten past five the next morning, despite the fact that he and Scott had sat up talking until almost one o'clock. He pottered around his room until 5.30 and then quietly slipped through the bathroom and into the adjoining bedroom.

Scott was renowned for sleeping the least out of anyone on the island and John was expecting to find him either wide awake and bored, or missing completely. Unless Scott was sick or medicated it was virtually unheard of for him to be in bed past 5 o'clock so John was startled when he spotted the recumbent form of his dark haired brother on the bed.

Scott had, as usual, left his curtains open and John glanced out of the window before padding silently over to the bed and smiling softly down at his brother. Scott was lying flat on his back, covered up to his chest with bedcovers and his left arm was resting on the pillow above his head. His other arm lay across his midriff and his fingertips were wedged between the pages of a book that he had been reading before falling asleep.

John gently pried the book from Scott's fingers, flattened out the slight crumpling that had occurred overnight and then marked Scott's page with a piece of tissue. He put the book on the bedside table and chuckled quietly. 'Memoirs from the cockpit of Thunderbird #1' was the autobiography of the now-retired former-commander of the USAF Thunderbirds display team. Gordon had discovered the book online and had jokingly ordered it for Scott's birthday, purely because of its title. Scott had laughed at the joke when he'd unwrapped the gift and had then stunned Gordon when he announced that he would enjoy reading it because he knew, and had flown with, the author.

John paused and looked around the room, at a loss of what to do while Scott was asleep. Apart from Scott, lying on the bed, there were very few signs that the eldest Tracy boy had moved in at all. Scott was a notorious neat-freak and he had put all his clothes and luggage away before retiring to bed on his first night in Tasmania. The boxes from Rosie's apartment stuck out in the tidy room and John reluctantly found himself gravitating towards them.

Uncertainly he opened the starred box and removed the photo albums. The early-morning sun coming through the window was giving off a cheerful, yellow glow and quietly, so as not to disturb his brother, John moved towards it and curled up on the sofa with the albums.

~#~

Scott finally awoke nearly half an hour later. He sat up and automatically reached for where he'd last seen his book. Not finding it, he patted around the covers in confusion until he spotted it on the table beside the bed. He guessed that John must have been in to see him and he was just about to climb out of bed when a quiet sniffle made him realise that his brother was still in the room.

Scott quickly swung his legs out of bed and crossed the room. John was curled up across the corner of the sofa with his knees resting against the arm nearest the window. Scott slipped himself onto the cushion next to his brother who jumped slightly when Scott suddenly appeared beside him. Scott gently wrapped an arm around John's waist and pulled him gently back against his chest. He then rested his chin on John's shoulder and peered at the book.

"Couldn't sleep?" he asked.

John shook his head and settled back against Scott. "I came to see if you wanted to go for a run," he replied softly. "…but you were asleep and I didn't feel like going on my own. I…I knew these were in the top of one of the boxes so I thought I'd take a look while I was waiting for you to wake up."

"You could have woken me," Scott replied quietly. "You know I don't normally sleep much anyway."

John shook his head again. "That was exactly why I didn't," he said. "You don't sleep enough. You never have, so I wasn't going to disturb you. You were well away and you didn't even twitch when I took your book off you."

Scott flexed the arm that was wrapped around his brother and squeezed him gently. "You're a fine one to talk," he said with a chuckle. "You're up at all hours watching the stars and you're always up and about whenever I call you for a late night chat."

This brought a small smile to John's face. "Touché," he replied. "…although I kind of run to my own time zone when I'm up there. How do you know I don't have a nap in the middle of the afternoon sometimes?"

Scott thought about this. "Don't suppose I do," he said eventually. "Mind you, we've all done that from time to time…after a late-night or particularly hard rescue, it's not all that uncommon."

John tried to shrug and then chuckled quietly when he realised that he couldn't because of the way Scott was holding him.

Scott felt rather than heard the chuckle and dug his chin harder into his brother's shoulder before tapping gently on the photo album. "Can I look through these with you?" he asked quietly. "You can talk me through the things you recognise and we can try and work out anything that you don't."

John nodded slightly and adjusted his grip on the books. "Are you sure?" he asked. "They're both pre-Jacob. They're mainly day trips, holidays and the like."

"I'm sure," Scott replied and gave John another squeeze. "Rosie played a big part in your life, Johnny. She was important to you for a very long time and she gave you your son. I wasn't given the opportunity to get to know Rosie when she was alive and unless you tell me then I'll never really know her. Show me the photos, Johnny…tell me the stories and I'll be here for you, no matter what."

~#~

It took two and a half hours for John to talk Scott through the entirety of both albums and Scott held his brother as he swung back and forth between laughter and bittersweet tears. The boys postponed their jog until the following day and finally showered, dressed and emerged from their rooms with just enough time to snatch breakfast before the kitchen closed. John quietly drove them to the hospital and Scott left him in Jacob's room while he went to find out if there was any particular reason that the little boy was still taking up valuable space in the hospital nursery.

~#~

When Scott returned he had a smile on his face. He pushed the door to Jacob's room open and took a moment to locate John who waved at him from the floor beside the cot where he was sitting while he read Jacob a book.

Scott chuckled before walking over and patting them both gently on the head. He then shook his head, sighed theatrically and sat down in front of John where he sat with a grin on his face.

John watched him for a moment. "What?" he asked. "Scott. What are you up to?"

Scott shook his head again. "I've been doing exactly what I promised I'd do," he said cryptically. "…and I have exceeded even my expectations."

"What?" John frowned in confusion. "Scott, you're sounding a lot like Gordon at the moment. What have you done?"

"Exactly what I promised to do," Scott repeated and then looked down and winked at Jacob. "Er, Johnny, you might want to save the book before it's too late."

While John's attention had been on Scott, Jacob had caught hold of the book and was contentedly gnawing on one of the corners. He grumbled when John carefully extracted it from his grasp but was soon happily chewing on the bear's head instead.

"Hey, he's back on orange again today," Scott pointed out. "What happened to the pink one?"

John chuckled. "Pink is number three," he explained. "…and in the wash. One and two are _peach_, three is pink. It was either pink or nothing so Joel got the pink one. It's just as well too. We've been swapping the bear every morning and there's barely enough time to get them washed and dried in between as it is." John stopped and looked at Scott. "Anyway, don't change the subject. What have you been doing for the past half hour that made you come back looking so…so…cheery?"

Scott grinned again. "I went to talk to the nurses…and then one of the doctors. You know, Johnny, for someone so bright you can be really rather dense sometimes. You could have got this little guy out of here last week, if you'd only asked."


	59. Chapter 59

~#~ (Chapter 59)

"I…I…What?" John looked at Scott with a bemused expression on his face. "Really?"

Scott grinned and nodded. "Yeah. Jacob can be released into your care, just as long as you agree to bring him back here once a week so they can keep an eye on his arm."

John let out a sigh. "Wow," he whispered. "That's…that's…"

Whatever 'that' was, John didn't seem to have a word for it and instead of explaining he wrapped one arm more securely around Jacob and flung the other around Scott's neck. He then pulled his brother towards himself and buried his head in Scott's neck with a loud exhalation of breath. "Thank you," he murmured. "Thank you, thank you, thank you."

Scott, unused to John being the first to make physical contact, froze for a second and then slipped an arm around John's back. He slid the other under his brother's shoulder and then buried his fingers in John's soft, silky hair. "You're welcome, Johnny," he whispered. "Any time, although I feel I should point out that we won't be taking him back with us today."

John nodded against Scott's neck and then pulled his head up out of Scott's grasp. "No. I don't suppose we will. God, Scott, we need to do some serious shopping…and we need to talk to Alan. I have no idea what he's going to get…or what he's already got. I'm going to need a lot of things while I'm here and there's no point in doubling up on stuff, that'd just be wasteful. What am I supposed to do though? Leave the things I buy here behind when I leave? Joel suggested I donate some of Jacob's clothes to the hospital when we finally get to go home so I suppose I could do the same with…"

"Johnny, stop." Scott's quiet order came along with a gentle grip on John's chin which halted his sudden flow of words. "Calm down or you'll upset the baby."

John looked down at Jacob and then raised an eyebrow at Scott who countered with a wink. Jacob looked far from upset. Sitting on John's lap with an arm wrapped snugly around his torso, Jacob looked positively content.

"OK, so maybe not," Scott admitted. "…but at least it stopped you. Aht!" He held up a finger and wiggled it when John opened his mouth. "No you don't. You listen to me, John Tracy, and you listen good. I agree, you need to speak to Alan but he and Tin-Tin are shopping for _permanent_ things. You and I, we need to shop for things to use while you're here. If that means you buy stuff that you have to leave behind…well, then so be it, it really doesn't matter. You need things for Jacob while you're here and you'll need things for him at home as well. I don't think there's any way you can avoid making duplicates of the things that Alan's buying, simply because you need things in both places. Dad already said it would be impractical to fly or ship furniture out from here, remember? I think he was assuming that you'd use the things in Rosie's apartment while you were here but that was before you saw the place, of course."

John frowned slightly. "You…um…you know about that then?" he asked quietly. "I…I guess I should have realised that Dad would tell you."

Scott nodded sadly. "He thought I should know, so I didn't inadvertently stick my foot in it, so to speak. He's called me every day he's been away, the same as you call him whenever you're…er…not around. Johnny, you've probably guessed already but he also warned me against saying anything about the boxes in our room. You effectively introduced me to those this morning though, so that's not really an issue any more."

John shrugged. "Don't worry, I'm not intending to go through them any further at the moment." He stopped and let out a strangled cough. "Saying that, I didn't intend to go through them this morning, they just sort of called out to me. They can stay where they are for now but they'll have to be transported back to the island at some point. I knew what was in the box I opened this morning and I know the two marked as 'dresser' contain Rosie's paperwork but I don't entirely know what's in the other two nor what's in the tin. Uncle Jo said that it's stuff I'll be grateful for in the future."

Scott winced. "Like Father's boxes," he said quietly.

John bit gently into his bottom lip and cast his eyes up at the ceiling before looking back at Scott and nodding. "I…I guess so, yeah. Scott, I don't think I want that to be me," he admitted. "I don't want to be dependent on reminders of the life I could have had with Rosie. In years to come I don't want Jacob looking back and thinking that I never managed to get over this, even if I…um…never really do. Dad's never truly got over losing Mama, Scott and I don't want to live like that. I guess it's true what they say, things like this bring up things you'd never normally think of and it's made me realise that I don't want to spend the rest of my life on my own. I know I'll always have the four of you but eventually you'll find partners and go your separate ways and then…well, you know what I'm trying to say."

Tears were starting to form in John's eyes again and Scott pulled him back against his neck. "Hey, hey. You'll never be alone, Johnny, not as long as there's breath in my body. That's a promise and I'll make it to you, here and now. You know my feelings on having a family of my own, it's never going to happen. If, and that's a ridiculously huge 'if'…_if_ I'm ever fortunate enough to find a special someone who's willing to share my life, on my terms, then she'll be moving to the island with me and not the other way around. I can't speak for Gordy but I don't reckon there's much chance of Virgil ever leaving. Apart from Alan he's the only one of us who's never tried going it alone and with how he is, well…" Scott paused and shrugged. "I just can't see him trying it now and the same goes for Alan too…at least while Kyrano's alive. Once Al finishes maturing and finally settles down then he'll have no reason to leave. Tin-Tin's too close to her father to move away and I know that even though Alan misses the racing scene, it doesn't exert the same pull on him as it used to. The birds are way faster and more exciting than anything on four wheels could ever be. Alan even admits that himself and as much as I hate to admit it, One will be his eventually. The day that Dad decides he's had enough of running everything will be the day that I hand over control of One and…well, I guess I'll just be flying the desk from then on in."

John pulled back and looked Scott in the eye. "That would never happen," he said. "Dad would never…not while…" He stopped and looked at Scott who met his gaze before blinking slowly. "Oh."

"No," Scott replied sadly. "Not while he was still breathing, he wouldn't. God willing, that day won't come for many, many years but that doesn't detract from what I was saying. You'll never be truly alone. There will always be someone there for you, it just might be one of us rather than a wife or life partner." Scott used the finger and thumb of his left hand to pinch the top of his nose and then snorted. "God, I'm sorry, Johnny. I'm making a right hash of comforting you and I'm depressing myself in the process. Take me out back and shoot me now."

John chuckled and leaned his head against Scott's. "Can't do that, big bro. If I put you out of your misery now then how would we grow into grumpy old men together?"

Scott let out an explosive burst of laughter as John's words sunk in. "Yeah, it did kind of sound like that, didn't it? Maybe I'll just keep you around to act as a buffer between myself and Alan. There's more chance of the little twerp surviving if I don't have to deal with him directly one hundred percent of the time."

John smiled. "Give him some credit, Scott. There's not many people on this planet that can get under your skin quite as effectively as he can. He's so damn good at subtly winding you up without you being consciously aware of it that I'm sure that he does it half the time just to see how extreme a reaction he can get out of you."

Scott looked a little sheepish and then grinned down at Jacob. "And someone here will no doubt do the same thing to yourself when he's a little…alright a lot, older. Won't you, Jacob?"

Jacob replied with a gentle coo and a very wet, dribbly smile which made both Scott and John chuckle. Scott watched the boy for a moment longer and then frowned. "Johnny, turn him towards the window a moment," he asked. "I think that tooth may have finally broken through."

John's eyebrows shot up and he hastily adjusted his grip on Jacob and stood up. Scott rolled his eyes and then scrambled to his feet as John carried Jacob across the room to the changing station. John sat the boy on the mat and then held him upright while Scott gently pried his mouth open.

"Oh yeah, Johnny. It's definitely through," Scott announced after a moment. "It's a sharp little thing, too. Here, swap places and let me hold him, then you can see."

After a bit of shuffling, which Jacob seemed to find highly amusing, Scott had hold of the baby and John got to run his finger across Jacob's gum line. "Wow," he said quietly. "His first tooth. Scott, that's my first milestone." John swept Jacob out of Scott's arms and hugged him close. "We've got our first milestone, baby," he whispered. "…and here's to many more over the next few years."

Scott sidled up beside John and wrapped his arms around his brother and his nephew. "He's just like his Dad, John. Apart from the chewing he's made virtually no fuss even though he must have been hurting for the past few days. You're definitely a little mini-Johnny, aren't you, Titch?"

John snorted as Jacob gave Scott a beaming smile which showed off his tiny tooth. "I think he's proud of it," he commented and then looked at Scott as a thought hit him. "Aw man, Dad's going to be miffed when we tell him. What time is it?" He stopped and looked at his watch. "It's a bit early yet. Let's see if we can borrow the office downstairs after lunch. Dad can say 'hi' to Jacob and we can find out what's happening with Alan before we call him tonight."

Scott nodded. "Sounds good to me. What would you say to a bit of fresh air before lunch? Then, when we've spoken to Father we can have a think about what we might need to buy before we speak to Alan and he tells us about all the things that Onaha's thought of that we haven't."


	60. Chapter 60

~#~ (Chapter 60)

After lunch the brothers took Jacob down to the curator's office. Carly wasn't there but Julie, one of the administrators from the office next door, heard them knocking and told them to go in. Carly, she explained, had spoken to the admin ladies and advised them that John had permission to use the phone in her office whenever he wanted. She had also told them that John didn't need watching and wasn't to be disturbed once he had settled down inside.

John looked at Scott and burst out laughing at the incredulous look on his face. "I told you Dad had her won over," he said. "Whatever he said or did though, it's proving very useful."

Scott shrugged and pushed the door to the office open so John could enter, he then turned back to Julie who was still hovering nearby. "Thanks for your help, Honey. We'll be just fine from here on in."

Julie flushed red. "Very good, Mr Tracy," she said and then scuttled back into her office, closing the door as she passed through it. A burst of girly chatter from behind the door followed just a moment later and Scott rolled his eyes at a particularly loud, high pitched peel of laughter that burst over the giggling. He turned and entered the office to find John sitting on the curator's chair with Jacob on his lap.

John chuckled as Scott walked towards him. "Shame on you, _Mr Tracy_, you've just singlehandedly disrupted the entire admin department. There'll be no work done in there for a fair while yet, just listen to them."

Scott cocked his head to one side and grinned as the muffled sound of laughter and muted conversation travelled through the wall from the room next door. "Not my fault," he mumbled. "Blame my genes, that makes it Dad's fault. It sounds like he may have won over the woman whose office this is anyway."

John chuckled. "Or, as I think I said before, he scared her. How about we stop prevaricating and make our call before she appears and wants her office back?"

Scott grinned. "Fair enough," he agreed. "Go for it."

~#~

John pressed the appropriate buttons on the vid-phone unit and chuckled when the call was answered almost immediately. "Hi Dad," he called cheerfully. "Jacob's tooth's come through. Scott spotted it earlier and he's been really good about it."

Jeff adjusted the angle of his vid-screen and waved at Jacob. "Hello you two. John, I'm going to assume that by 'he' you mean Jacob's been good, rather than Scott."

John smirked and looked across the desk to where Scott was sitting in the visitor's chair. "Oh, I don't know, Scott's been pretty good too. He's even got Jacob cleared to leave the hospital, just as soon as we get everything in place at the hotel."

Jeff smiled. "Well, that's great news," he said. "…but what did he do? I was under the impression that Jacob wouldn't be discharged for the foreseeable future."

"I just asked," Scott called out and then climbed to his feet and wandered around the desk. He squatted on the floor beside John and addressed the screen. "Hello, Father. Really, that's all I did, nothing more. I think there was a breakdown of communication somewhere over the past couple of weeks. Originally the hospital weren't willing to discharge Jacob until his arm was completely healed but that was when it was still possible that he was going to become a ward of the courts. Once you and John got here someone, I haven't worked out whether that should have been a social worker or a member of hospital staff, but someone should have sat you both down and discussed what was going to happen next. I don't know why that didn't happen but everyone here was most apologetic and I'm inclined to think that it wasn't the hospital that was at fault."

Jeff nodded. "I'd like to think you're right," he agreed. "Most of the people we've encountered there have been more than competent and Jacob's wellbeing seems to have been at the forefront of their thoughts and actions the whole time he's been there."

John nodded this time. "They have," he agreed. "They've been excellent and I'm sure it was just an oversight. I don't suppose it would have happened if someone else had needed Jacob's room but at the moment there are several empty spots in the nursery even though the children's wards are pretty busy."

"I think you're probably right," Jeff commented. "So, I'm guessing the pair of you will be hitting the shops tomorrow? You'll be wanting to speak to Alan first, I assume?"

"Yes, Father." Scott nodded. "We thought we'd find out how he was getting on and see what he'd bought so far. John's been a little worried that between us and Alan we're going to be doubling up on things. Personally I can't see a way around it and I'd value your opinion."

Jeff shook his head and smiled. "And I appreciate your asking, although the answer is really quite simple. Scott, John, one thing you seem to have both forgotten is that babies are designed to be portable. Therefore you can get lightweight, transportable versions of most of their paraphernalia. If the pair of you buy those then you could probably bring a lot of it back with you when you finally come home. I have a feeling it will also make things easier whenever you need to take Jacob off the island in the future. You'll know that you have the items you need, whenever you need them and that everything is in good, clean condition. Boys, it's a simple solution and the items will serve a purpose in the future. John, what do you think?"

"I think Scott and myself are incredibly dense," John replied with a grin. "We've both been thinking of furniture along the lines of solid, sturdy and too big, heavy or awkward to transport easily." He stopped and looked at Scott who had started a gentle tug-of-war game with Jacob and his bear while Jeff was speaking. "I also think that we've completely lost someone's attention."

Without taking his eyes off the bear, Scott smirked. "I'm listening," he said quietly. "You think we're a pair of idiots who think furniture is only big and heavy. You'd be right, too."

Jeff smiled at the three of them. "I take it that solved your little dilemma then?" he asked. "I'm glad I could be of service. Now, in regards to Alan, if you do still want to talk to him you'll have to wait until later. I've been reliably informed that he and Tin-Tin are visiting the theatre this evening and Onaha has told me that they're going alone which is a somewhat frightening thought."

Scott looked up at this and grinned. "You do know that's why he agreed to help out in the end, Father? So that he could spend some quality time with Tin-Tin that wouldn't get interrupted, either by one of us or the…um…alarm. Tin-Tin's got a sensible head on her shoulders and will keep him out of trouble."

Jeff chuckled. "That was my plan all along, Scott. I assume, by what you're saying, that you had to explain it to him. That makes sense now I think about it, he was particularly reluctant when I first suggested the shopping trip. I honestly expected him to jump at the chance to have some time off the island, even if Tin-Tin was being accompanied by her mother."

Scott shook his head. "He didn't get it at all, Father. He'd got stuck in 'only being sent to carry bags' mode and couldn't see past that to 'won't be shopping the _whole_ time'."

"He was never going just to carry bags," John argued. "He's there to make sure that Tin-Tin and Onaha don't turn my room into some girly paradise just because there's a baby in it."

Scott fell about laughing and Jeff chuckled too. John looked from one to the other of them and frowned. "Hey, no fair," he said. "I'm not getting to pick anything for myself and I'm putting the revamp of my personal space squarely in the hands of my baby brother."

Scott attempted to calm himself and then took one look at the serious expression on John's face and burst out laughing again. "Don't knock it," he said. "Dad could have sent Virgil. At least with Alan you know that everything will be more-or-less to your taste. With Virg you would have probably ended up with some weird eclectic mixture of styles and colours."

John chuckled at this. "That's true," he agreed. "…and with Gordon I'd have ended up with yellow walls, gaudy furniture and some sort of nautical theme. I think you're probably right, Alan is the best man for the job. I still want to talk to him later though, just to see how he's getting on."

Scott nodded and turned to Jeff. "We'll leave it until later and I'll ping his watch. If he's free to talk he can reply, if not then he can just ignore it and I can try again later. What's everyone else been up to? Any of them been anywhere today?"

Jeff shook his head. "No, everyone else has had a peaceful day. I'm reluctant to say 'quiet' because Virgil took it on himself to start making modifications to the house. He decided to start with the balustrades outside the sitting room but apparently they weren't agreeable to the changes he wanted to make. We spent a great deal of the day with a sheer drop between the sitting room and poolside but thankfully he managed to fit them all back again with his modifications in place. I have to say he's done a great job, it was a simple enough idea to gate off the top of the stairs to make the balcony itself childproof but Virgil's definitely put his own spin on it. The gate itself is coded to…each of us with an override control that's linked to my desk and, so I'm told, is also accessible from…somewhere very far away."

Scott snorted at Jeff's attempts to keep the call as unassuming as possible. "We understand, Father, but what about Grandma, Onaha and Kyrano? I take it Virg has taken them into account?"

Jeff nodded. "He certainly has. Your grandmother was most taken by the handmade bracelet that he presented her with this afternoon. There's a similar one waiting for Onaha when she gets home and Kyrano currently has a simple oval brooch which Virgil has promised to etch the front of, once he decides upon a design."

"Clever," John commented. "…and as you say, very Virgil. Those stairs were worrying me when I was thinking about the house the other day. If the stairs are secure then we can leave the doors open like normal and this little one…" John stopped and jiggled Jacob slightly, "…can play out there safely."

"That's the general idea," Jeff agreed. "Although I have no idea what we're going to do about the lower balcony area. We can make do while Jacob's not mobile but we'll have to do something once he's moving around. Maybe we can start by just cordoning off the area outside the kitchen so that the doors can be left open. It's not like he's going to be in the kitchen unattended for a fair few years yet but it would make life easier for Mother and Kyrano."

"Virg'll like the challenge," Scott said confidently. "…and whatever he does will suit the house, he'll make sure of that."

Jeff nodded again. "And then at some point Jacob's going to need a room of his own…or you, John, are going to need a house of your own. I'd prefer you to stay where you are but it's not my decision and it would be selfish of me to just assume that's what you want. If you'd rather have a place of your own then that can be arranged but if not then we have ample space in the house. It's not something you need to start worrying about, it's just something I thought you would need to think about in the future. For the time being we're just going to concentrate on making the house safe for when you bring Jacob home. I'll let you boys go now, I'm sure Ms Davidson would appreciate her office back at some point this afternoon." He leaned down slightly and waved at the screen. "You be a good boy for your Daddy, little one and Scott, you behave for your brother. I'll speak to you both tomorrow."

Scott's 'Goodbye, Father' crossed with John's 'Bye, Dad' and the pair laughed as Jacob followed them with a loud 'a ba'. John waved the little boy's hand at the screen. "Bye bye, Granddad," he murmured and then pressed the button to disconnect the call.


	61. Chapter 61

~#~ (Chapter 61)

John looked at Scott with an incredulous look on his face. "Did Dad just offer to build me a house?" he asked.

Scott shrugged and then grinned. "Not personally, no," he replied. "Although he was possibly volunteering Virgil to build you one. That's…well, it's not an offer you're going to get every day."

John frowned. "No," he agreed. "I don't suppose it is. It's a kind thought but not altogether necessary. He seems to be forgetting that I already occupy more than two thirds of the roundhouse. If, and at the moment I can't see it ever happening, but _if_ I decided I needed more space he wouldn't need to build me a house. It would be a much simpler prospect just to relocate the junk that's stored in the back of the roundhouse and let me move in there." John pondered the thoughtful expression that had formed on Scott's face. "Don't worry, Scott. It's not going to happen. I'm not planning on going anywhere, I was just pointing out that it would be easy to do without causing too much disruption to everyone else."

Scott nodded slowly. "I know," he said quietly. "…and even if you did move in there, it's not like you'd be all that far away. Let's get out of here, then we can get thinking about what we need to buy to tide you over until you and this little one…" Scott paused to stroke Jacob's hair. "…can get home. We can worry about rooms, houses and roundhouses once you're both there."

~#~

They took Jacob back to the nursery and John left him with Scott while he went in search of some notepaper. When he returned the two brothers spent some time playing with the little boy before eventually putting him down for his nap.

While Jacob was asleep Scott and John put together the list of things they would need to buy over the next few days. Several of the nurses cottoned on to what they were doing and suggested various items that they hadn't thought of.

By the time Jacob woke up the brothers had a comprehensive list of items and John realised that no matter how portable they were he was going to be leaving some of them behind. He spoke to the nurses to explain the situation and they agreed that the hospital would be able to either make use of, or redistribute, anything that he was unable to take home.

~#~

Scott and John knew they wouldn't see much of Jacob the next day so they stayed at the hospital until they were thrown out. They drove back to the hotel, changed into some smart clothes and then went out for dinner on foot.

By mutual agreement it had been decided not to disturb Alan until at least eleven o'clock so they stayed in the restaurant until almost ten and then wandered slowly back to the hotel. They requested that room service bring them some coffee and then set about creating a plan of action for the following day.

Scott suggested that they rescheduled their run for the next morning, using the logic that it would be difficult to go once they had Jacob with them. John agreed and said that they could probably do the same the morning after as it was doubtful they would manage to get everything ready for Jacob in just one day. Even once John and the room were organised, the hospital wouldn't release the boy until a doctor had declared him medically fit and well. This was bound to take several hours and John guessed that they would probably manage three runs before Jacob was finally 'free'.

~#~

Scott sent the signal to Alan's watch at exactly eleven o'clock and received a reply almost immediately.

"Hey, Scott." Alan's flustered looking face appeared in the small screen of Scott's watch. "Just give me a minute." John keyed his watch in to Scott's, just as Alan shook his arm and disappeared from view. A moment later the view shook again and the watching brothers heard a quiet, frustrated cry of 'Help, Tin. Get this thing off me.'

"Calm yourself, Alan." Tin-Tin's soft voice came through the watches before the upside-down view showed the pretty Malaysian girl walking onto the screen. "Stop it or you're going to hurt yourself. Just sit still and let me do it."

There was a pause as Scott and John were graced with a view that swung gently back and forth from the back of a chair to a television which was silently playing music videos.

"There, silly, you're free. Now, how about we turn poor Scott the right way up before he starts to feel queasy." The view on the screen rotated quickly as Tin-Tin pulled Alan's arm round until both her face and Alan's could be seen. John switched his watch back off again and moved over to where Scott was sitting at the desk. He then crouched beside his brother so they could both be seen without using a split-screen.

Alan spotted him and the frown melted from his face. "John," he cried. "Boy, it's good to see you. How's things?"

John smiled. "I could ask you the same thing," he commented. "What was Tin-Tin having to save you from?"

Alan flushed red as Tin-Tin leaned down and picked up a piece of black material which she waved in front of the watch. "I was saving him from the big, bad bowtie," she said with a laugh. "I had to tie it for him too, before we went out. Oh, John, you would have loved the show. It was a wonderful night, wasn't it Alan?"

"It certainly was," Alan replied and then grinned as he made a swipe for the bowtie. Tin-Tin pre-empted him and pulled it out of his reach but unbalanced herself in the process. She made a grab for Alan in an attempt to stop herself falling but in doing so she overbalanced him and the pair ended up in a sprawled, giggling heap on the bed.

Alan gently manhandled Tin-Tin until she was snuggled against him. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, kissed the top of her head and then held the other arm up so that they could both see his watch. "It was a great evening altogether," he continued as if nothing had happened. "The Sydney Opera house is amazing and…well, I'd like to think it made up for the abuse we suffered this afternoon. It did, didn't it?"

He directed the question to Tin-Tin who nodded and then giggled at the frown that appeared on both Scott and John's faces. "It did," she agreed. "But don't worry about that any more, Alan. It's all over and done with now. You said it yourself, she was just a crazy old lady."

"Will someone just tell us what happened?" Scott asked. "…and what's this about an old lady?"

Alan tightened his grip on Tin-Tin and frowned at the watch. "She's some crazy broad who was shopping at the same time as us this afternoon. She took it upon herself to berate me, very loudly and in the middle of a store, for my lack of self control. She then had a go at Tin-Tin for her lack of morality and nearly reduced Onaha to tears by telling her she was a terrible mother for allowing her daughter to become knocked up by someone like me."

"I beg your pardon," John replied. "She said what?…just…_what_?"

Tin-Tin reached up and placed a finger across Alan's mouth to stop him answering; she then turned and looked at the screen. "They were her actual words," she explained. "We were shopping for baby items, John. We were walking hand in hand and she assumed I was pregnant and that Alan was the father."

Alan moved his head slightly to dislodge Tin-Tin's finger. "And she wasn't willing to listen when we tried to explain that wasn't the case. I don't know how young she thought we were but she was rude, insulting and just plain offensive. It was the shop we were in that missed out though, I wasn't willing to stoop to her level and get in a slanging match in public so I took the girls and we left."

Scott smirked at Alan's use of the word 'girls' even though Onaha was over twice his age. "Well done," he said quietly. "It's not like you to be so…um…restrained."

Alan dropped his eyes from the screen for a moment and met Tin-Tin's gaze. "We'd been having such a great day," he said quietly. "We bought Jacob's cot first thing this morning and I knew we were going out tonight and…and everything was going well until _she_ came along. I didn't want to make a scene which would have put me at risk of not being able to take Tin-Tin out tonight, so I kept quiet. It was hard though...there's no way she should have got away with talking to either Tin-Tin or Onaha like that."

Tin-Tin stretched up and placed a chaste kiss on Alan's cheek. "They were only words," she said quietly. "We were never in any physical danger. It's a shame though, there were some lovely things in that shop."

Alan nodded. "We'll try again tomorrow, Honey," he promised and then turned back to his watch. "John, I think you'll be happy with the things we've got so far. We're choosing things carefully and trying to make sure that everything is as much to your style as possible. That's not as easy as it sounds but all three of us agreed that the cot was perfect as soon as we saw it. It will be delivered to Penelope in Bonga Bonga at the beginning of next week along with a mattress and a bedding set which Tin-Tin picked out."

"This is so unfair," John grumbled. "I'm not going to get to see any of this stuff until Jacob and I get home. I take it you thought about the colour of my room before picking out the bedding. I know Jacob's not going to be in there forever but I've got to live with your decisions until he's got a room of his own."

Alan looked at Tin-Tin who smiled, first at him and then into the watch. "Don't you worry yourself, John. The bedding will go beautifully with your room and you'll definitely approve when you see it."

"I have to admit that it is very cute," Alan agreed with a nod. "…and even though it's teddy bears it's really very…um…you. If we'd known you were going to call we could have brought it back with us instead of having it delivered. You could have seen it for yourself then."

John nodded with a vaguely puzzled look on his face. "Well, neither of us really knew we were going to be calling until earlier today. Scott got agreement that we can take Jacob out of the hospital once we've got everything set up for him here. We wanted to speak to you about furniture but Dad said you were out and…well, here we are. Alan, how can the bedding be very 'me'? I haven't had a bear for years, apart from Apollo of course, and he's hasn't moved from his shelf by the door since it became my room."

Scott let out a snort. "I didn't realise he was still there," he admitted. "I guess he's become so much part of the furniture that I don't even notice him any more."

John blushed. "He's been guarding my room for years. Mama bought him so I could hardly just throw him out."

Scott leaned across and threw an arm around John's shoulders. "No, you couldn't," he agreed. "…and no-one would expect you to. Sparky was packed in a box way before we moved to the island but I still know where he is."

John smiled sadly and turned back to Alan who was nodding thoughtfully. "So, the bedding?" he asked. "Please explain."

"It's not so much the bedding, John, it's more the colour scheme," Tin-Tin explained. "The main colour is a rich cream and the bears around the edge are an identical shade of lilac to your walls."

Alan was struggling not to interrupt as Tin-Tin finished her sentence. "John, Tin-Tin and Onaha, they wanted to buy a lampshade, wallpaper border and a couple of other bits that matched the bedding set," he said. "…but I stopped them. I hadn't thought about Jacob having a room of his own, should I have let them buy those things as well?"

John threw his arms in the air in an exaggerated shrug. "How should I know," he cried. "It's hard enough knowing that my room is going to be all messed up when I get back without having to worry about it being redecorated as well. I know it's got to be Jacob-friendly but that's only temporary and the last thing I want is to end up sleeping in a nursery. I suppose it makes sense to buy the matching stuff while you're there, then once Jacob does get his own room it can all be set up nicely but Alan, don't let Virgil near my walls."

Alan's eyes went wide. "Hey, John, it's OK, bro. I understand and I won't let Virgil anywhere near your walls. He's going to have to help put everything together though; will you be alright with that?"

John spluttered. "Of course," he replied. "In fact I insist on it. He's the only one that's guaranteed to put everything together properly. We want the stuff to last so, yes, please, please, _please_ get Virgil to build the furniture."

Scott, Alan and Tin-Tin all laughed at this. Alan and flat-packed furniture were a recipe for disaster and Gordon wasn't a great deal better than his younger sibling. Jeff was perfectly capable but refused to read the instructions and usually ended up arguing with Grandma about the correct way to assemble whatever it was he was supposed to be building. Virgil generally didn't need any instructions and could build most things in half the time it took any of the others to do so. Also, once Virgil had put something together, it never came apart again.

"OK then," Alan said. "We'll go back tomorrow and buy the rest of the set and then we'll try the other shop again and hope that that old hag isn't hanging around."

Tin-Tin slapped him on the chest. "Alan!" she exclaimed. "That's not nice. You said you weren't going to sink to her level, remember?"

"Sorry, Tin," Alan replied and looked vaguely scandalised at being told off, by a girl, in front of his brothers. "She's just got under my skin. I promise I'll be on my best behaviour tomorrow."

Scott and John smirked at one another as they listened to Alan's quiet words.

Tin-Tin spotted the look and restarted the conversation. "Mother is still undecided about the high chair," she told them. "She can't make up her mind between two. One goes better with the kitchen and the other is more suited to the dining room."

"I told her to just buy them both," Alan announced. "…but she looked scandalised at the thought. I told her that Dad wouldn't mind 'cos it would save carrying one of them backwards and forwards between the two rooms. I don't think she thought that moving it would be that much of an issue."

"Sounds like an easy solution to me," Scott said with a nod. "Things are only going to get broken if something as big as that's being lugged all over the house. Not to mention that it wouldn't be particularly fair on Kyrano who'd probably be the one doing the…um…lugging."

John snorted. "Your command of the English language is great, Scott. What he's saying is true though, Tin-Tin. Tell your mother to get both of them and I'll make sure I get rid of the one we'll be buying tomorrow before I leave here."

Tin-Tin nodded and then turned towards the door when a gentle knocking noise was heard. "That's my cue to go. I'll see you two soon," she said and then turned the watch into the bedcovers so she could kiss Alan goodnight.

Scott and John heard the door open and then close again before Alan turned the watch back around. The young blonde looked a little dazed and even though he'd obviously made an attempt to clean it off, he still had a little of Tin-Tin's lipstick on his top lip. "Um…" he said hesitantly. "Er…I guess that means it's getting late. Will you guys be calling again tomorrow? I think we'll be here for another couple of days before we head for Penelope's."

"I'd like to know how you're getting on," John remarked quietly. "If Tin-Tin's got an 11.30 curfew we could always call afterwards. How does just before twelve sound?"

Alan nodded. "Sure thing, fellas. I don't know what Tin wants to do tomorrow evening but I'm sure we'll be going somewhere. It sure feels great to have a little freedom. Dad's normally completely unreasonable about letting me do anything on my own. He even gets me a chaperone whenever I'm in New York."

"Well he knew and gave his blessing, more or less, that you and Tin-Tin could go out alone this evening," John said. "If he sees that you come to no harm over the next few days then you never know, he might let up on you a little in the future. You know he only does it because he's worried about you."

"I know, it's that baby of the family thing again," Alan replied with a gentle nod. "I kind of understand where he's coming from but it's just so darn restrictive."

Scott moved his watch slightly closer to his face. "It won't be that way forever, I promise," he said. "…but for now, just enjoy the next few days…oh, and behave yourself."


	62. Chapter 62

~#~ (Chapter 62)

Scott and John finally managed their run the next morning before returning to the hotel for a shower and breakfast. After eating they headed out towards town and hit the shops…hard.

The brothers had sorted their shopping list into some sort of order with the most important items at the top of the page so the first thing they set out to buy was a car seat for Jacob. The plan was for the seat to be fitted into the rental car and then moved into the plane when John was finally able to take Jacob home.

John trailed after Scott as he headed into the largest mother and baby store in the shopping centre. The eldest Tracy boy stopped one of the staff and explained the situation to her but as soon as he mentioned that the seat would be going in a plane she stopped him and scurried off to get the manager. She returned less than a minute later with a young blonde man in a shirt and tie who introduced himself as Nick.

Once Nick understood what it was that John and Scott were doing he more or less turned himself into their personal shopper by spending most of the morning with them. John was initially reluctant to voice his opinions on the items he was shown and Nick watched with interest as Scott negated this by dragging him into an impromptu game of one-upmanship. He eventually found that every suggestion he made was being overruled by Scott and then again by John who, about half way through the morning, suddenly decided that he was going to buy whatever he wanted with no regard to the cost. He justified this by reminding Scott that whatever he didn't take back to the island would be left in the care of the hospital. They had, in turn, promised to either use the items or give them to whoever was most in need of them at the time. If the items were good enough quality then they would last for many years and could possibly help several needy families before they finally either broke or wore out.

The car seat was one of the last things they actually bought, in spite of it being the first thing they went in for. Nick took them through the various seats and pointed out the pros and cons of each design. Despite his assurances that many of the other seats were suitable, John picked out the most expensive one in the store and Nick arranged for it to be fitted. Once he was confident it was a good fit, the sales assistant took Scott and John outside so he could take it out and show them how to refit it again safely. He made them both do it several times over until they were confident that they would be able to secure it correctly in the plane and then took them back inside and left them with Nick.

~#~

By the time the two brothers left the store they were hungry and thirsty but had cleared over two thirds of their shopping list. During the morning John's credit card had taken a severe beating, Nick had received a substantial tip and both Tracy boys had ended up thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

They took a break from shopping and stopped for lunch before taking a short walk around the local park. After their walk they returned to the shops and worked their way through the leftover items on the list. Scott spotted what could only have been the bedding set that Tin-Tin had described and both brothers agreed that the colours were a perfect match for John's room. John reminded his brother that Tin-Tin and Alan had already bought one in Sydney but Scott went ahead and bought it anyway. He claimed that it couldn't hurt to have a spare and that Jacob would be familiar with the pattern when he finally got home.

~#~

By mid-afternoon both boys had had enough of shopping. They had bought virtually everything on the list and decided that the things that as the things that were left were non-essential items they could leave them for the time being. Scott dropped John at the hospital at just after four o'clock and promised to return for him before Jacob went to bed.

The bulky items that they had purchased that morning would be delivered to the hotel the next afternoon but there was still a great deal of shopping in the car. Scott went back to the hotel and, with the help of a couple of hotel porters, unloaded the car into John's hotel room.

Eventually the car was empty and Scott found himself alone in the quiet hotel room. He set about unpacking the bags and put things away into the drawers and cupboards. He put Jacob's toiletries in the bathroom along with his own and John's and then gathered up all the wrappings, plastic clips and cellophane that had come off the various items. He wandered through into his room, threw everything in the wastepaper basket and then flopped down on his bed with a sigh.

~#~

The next thing Scott was aware of was a rhythmical beeping coming from his watch. He sat up and looked blearily around in confusion. It eventually dawned on him that he must have fallen asleep after finishing the unpacking in the room next door.

His watch started beeping again and he raised his arm and pressed the button which allowed the watches to communicate with one another.

A look of relief crossed John's face as the screen on his watch came to life. "Scott? Where the heck have you been? I've been trying to raise you on and off for over an hour. Are you alright? What happened?"

Scott grinned sheepishly at the screen and then scrubbed the hand of his free arm through his hair. "Um…" he began. "…can I claim that jet lag caught up with me and leave it at that?"

"What?" John's face crumpled in confusion for a moment and then his eyebrows shot up as he worked out what Scott had meant. "You fell asleep?" he asked. "...before dinner? Aw man, you realise what excellent blackmail that would make if you weren't here helping me out?"

Scott snorted. "Yeah, I know. It's…I think maybe the last few weeks have taken more out of me than I'd thought. It's one thing going out and about, flying and…things, but it's another thing entirely flying Father's desk. I don't know how he does it, especially when someone gets hurt. When Gordy took his…um…tumble the other day and I had to stay there not knowing exactly what was going on…without being able to see for myself that he was alright…It's hard, John. Do you understand?"

A sad expression settled in John's eyes. "I understand, Scotty. More than you could imagine 'cos that's my life, most of the time. You got your hands on Gordon just a few hours after him falling whereas I would normally have to wait weeks, if not months. You all seem to forget that I can hear everything that happens to you when you're out and about and I don't have the benefit of being able to see for myself that you're all in one piece. I can't run down to the silos and wait for the walking…or not so walking wounded to come home. I can't just fly out and sit at someone's side when they're in hospital or even when they're in the infirmary at home. So yes, Scott, I do understand. Please don't ever think I wouldn't."

"Sorry, Johnny," Scott said quietly with a chastised look on his face. "…and you're right, when things go bad we do tend to forget that you're stuck up there waiting for news. It's hard enough back at home but I doubt I truly comprehend what it's like for you, being so far away and completely dependant on someone else coming to get you if the worst should happen."

John nodded sadly and then cocked his head to one side as a frown formed on Scott's brow. "What's up?"

Scott shook himself. "Where are you?" he asked. "You're supposed to stay at the hospital until I pick you up."

"Scott, you were supposed to pick me up an hour and a half ago," John replied with a grin. "I was unceremoniously evicted from the hospital about half an hour ago and I've been sitting in the coffee shop across the road ever since. I'm currently pretending to use the photo booth at the corner of the street and would really like to go home…or at least back to the hotel, sometime soon."

"OK, Johnny, I get the picture and I'm on my way." Scott laughed. "…or at least I will be in just a second. Go back to the coffee shop and I'll meet you there."

John nodded. "OK, I'll see you soon then. Can I assume you'll be wanting pie?"

"And a coffee," Scott replied with a grin. "Just hang tight, John. I'll be there soon."

~#~

Scott and John got another run in before breakfast the next morning and then spent several hours with Jacob before returning to the hotel for lunch. Their delivery arrived just as they were finishing off their coffee and the rest of the afternoon was spent setting everything up and getting John acclimatised to where everything was and how it all worked. They set the steriliser up beside the kettle so it would be easy to make up Jacob's milk and Scott chuckled at John's insistence on phoning the hospital nursery to double check that they still had plenty of formula in stock.

They put his mind at rest and assured him that several tins had been put to one side when Scott had first raised the possibility of Jacob being released. These would be enough to last Jacob for a couple of weeks and would give John plenty of time to get more of the same brand bought and shipped to the island. Jacob would be going backwards and forwards to the hospital for the next couple of weeks while they kept an eye on his arm and John was told that if he ran low on formula during this time he just needed to ask and they would give him some more.

John thanked them and disconnected the call before turning to find that Scott was watching him from the sofa.

"Told you it would be fine," Scott commented. "You OK, Johnny?"

John shrugged and then nodded and looked at the baby-related paraphernalia that dotted the room. "I guess so," he said quietly. "I just can't help but think there must be something we've forgotten."

Scott waited until John looked at him before answering. "I'm sure there probably is," he replied truthfully. "However it's too late to worry about it now. Jacob has somewhere to eat, somewhere to sleep and he can be fed, clothed, changed and washed in safety. We've got all the essential items and anything else will just have to wait."

John looked around the room again and then leant over and ran his palm along the top of the travel cot which had been set up beside his bed. "I guess this is really it then. Scott, if you don't mind, I'm going to have an early night. Tomorrow morning I'm going to have a little person depending on me for his very existence and even though I've got to know him well over the past few weeks, that's a scary thought."

Scott leaned across and gently ruffled John's hair. "Scary but good," he said quietly and then clambered to his feet. "I'll leave you in peace. If you need me I'll be next door…oh, and don't worry about calling Alan. I'll do it later and I'll call Father as well. OK?"

John nodded vaguely and then stood up and wandered across the room. Scott stopped by the bathroom door and watched as his brother picked up his nightclothes and then pottered around the room. John leaned down and gently straightened the covers in the cot before moving the high chair slightly until both its back legs sat flush against the wall. Without looking up he headed slowly towards the bathroom and startled badly when Scott tried to back out of his way.

"Sorry," Scott murmured. "Didn't mean to make you jump, I just wanted to check you were really OK before I left you alone."

"I'm alright, Scott," he said quietly. "I just need to sleep."

Scott nodded and then pulled John into a gentle hug which his brother returned, tightly. "I'll keep quiet," he murmured. "…and then you can get some rest. Try not to worry, Johnny, everything's going to work out fine and I'll be here to help you every step of the way. By this time tomorrow that little boy of yours will be out of the hospital and sleeping soundly in that hideously expensive cot over there. OK?"

John let out a tired giggle and pulled himself out of Scott's arms. "OK," he said. "…and thank you, Scott. Thanks for coming here, thanks for helping me and…and…just thank you."

Scott smirked and pushed John towards the bathroom before passing him and heading through the adjoining door into his own room. "Anytime, Spaceman," he said with a chuckle. "Now get ready for bed."


	63. Chapter 63

~#~ (Chapter 63)

Despite feeling absolutely shattered and going to bed early, John had a restless night and awoke the next morning feeling barely more refreshed than the he had been when he'd gone to bed. He rolled over and opened his eyes only to find Scott, fast asleep, in the chair beside his bed.

John rubbed his eyes and then looked at Scott and grimaced at the position his brother was sitting in. With his head resting on one arm which was balanced on the arm of the chair, it looked like Scott might fall at the slightest disturbance. John slowly lifted his arm to look at his watch and then leaned over and gently patted the arm supporting Scott's head. "Scott," he whispered. "Scotty, wake up."

As John had hoped, Scott woke almost immediately. His head shot up from where it had been resting and he reached out and grabbed hold of John's wrist before his brother could pull his hand away. "What?" he said quietly. "Johnny, you OK?"

John chuckled and shook his arm from Scott's grasp. "I'm fine," he replied. "I was just a bit worried about your neck as you looked neither comfortable nor secure the way you were sitting. What are you doing in here anyway?"

Scott looked around for a moment and then pulled himself straighter in the chair. "You wouldn't settle," he said eventually. "Oh, don't get me wrong, you went to sleep almost as soon as your head hit the pillow but you must have only stayed in a restful sleep for maybe an hour. After that you were twitching and mumbling away to yourself. I kept coming in and settling you down but then you'd start up again shortly after I went back to my own room. After I'd finished speaking to Alan and Dad I decided it was easier to just get changed, do my teeth and then stay in here. Last time I looked it was just past three so that means we got…" Scott lifted his arm and looked blearily at his watch. "…wow, is that really the time? Oh well, that means we got the best part of four hours of uninterrupted sleep."

Although he couldn't remember the details John knew he'd been troubled by peculiar dreams and realised that this had probably been the cause of his disturbed sleep. "Four hours? So much for getting a last good night's sleep before bringing Jacob back here. We're not going to manage our morning run today either, it's too late for that now."

Scott looked at his watch again and nodded. "True," he said. "We need to get moving. I call first dibs on the shower." With that he jumped from the chair and was half way across the room before John could process what he'd said.

John fought with the covers and eventually managed to swing his legs over the side of the bed. "You call dibs on the bathroom?" he called out with a laugh. "What are you, twelve?"

Scott had disappeared into the bathroom by this point but his voice came back clearly through the open door. "No. It's just that the eldest and wisest gets first dibs on the shower. Everyone knows that."

Scott stopped dead half way across the bathroom when he suddenly remembered who he was talking to. John was usually quiet and non-confrontational but there was no way he would let a remark like that go without some sort of comment.

Sure enough Scott heard quiet footsteps pad across the room and John's tousled blonde head appeared around the door. "I take it that you mistook me for one of your other brothers for a moment there?" he asked with a grin. "…'cos the second of those definitions applies to any of them...but not to me."

Scott winced as he shook his head and then lifted it to look John in the eye. "Sorry Johnny," he said quietly. "I guess I got carried away. Put it down to lack of sleep if you want…but whatever happens I'm still calling dibs on the bathroom."

"You can have the bathroom," John said with a shrug and made to step backwards into his room. "You older guys are bound to need longer than us youngsters after all. Oh and Scott? I might blame it on the lack of sleep…if it was anyone other than you suggesting it."

Scott let out a snort of laughter as John disappeared from view and pulled the door closed behind him. He wandered through into his own room, grabbed his shaving kit from the table and then went back into the bathroom to prepare for the day ahead.

~#~

Eventually the two brothers were ready to face the world and made their way to the hospital. John headed straight for Jacob's room, claimed the little boy from one of the nurses and then refused to put him down for the rest of the morning. He took Jacob with him when he and Scott went to the curator's office to confirm that all the hospital's expenses had been covered and he took him with him when they went to speak to the doctor in charge of Jacob's case.

By the time they'd finished with the doctor it was time to eat. Scott and John went back to the nursery, changed Jacob and then took him down to the cafeteria for what would, theoretically, be their last meal in the hospital. The doctor had agreed to have Jacob's discharge papers ready for just after lunch so the meal should have been a relaxed one but it didn't really work out like that.

Despite the arrangements being made John was still worried that something might go wrong and ate very little while pushing his food around his plate. Jacob picked up on his father's anxiety and became gradually more fractious as time progressed and by the time the three Tracys finally got back to the nursery John was stressed, Jacob was ready to for a nap and Scott was almost ready to pull his hair out.

Luckily the doctor had done his part and the paperwork was waiting for them when they walked back into the nursery. The nurses had also packed Jacob's belongings into several large holdalls and Scott quickly volunteered to take these down to the car. He stayed in the parking lot for a short while to give John and Jacob time to say their goodbyes to the nurses and when he finally returned to collect them it was obvious that many of the nurses had shed tears while he'd been away.

"Hey Johnny," Scott said quietly as he walked up behind his brother. "The car's all packed. Are you nearly ready to make a move?"

Kathy, who had been having a final cuddle with Jacob, moved forwards and gently deposited the child into John's outstretched arms. "They're ready," she said. "This little one is only awake because we all wanted to say goodbye. I reckon he'll be asleep before you get him into the car."

John adjusted his hold on Jacob until the little boy was cradled against his chest. Jacob grumbled softly at the disturbance and then rubbed his head tiredly against the soft cotton of John's shirt. His eyes fell closed a moment later and by the time Scott and John had finished saying goodbye to the nurses, he was fast asleep.

Scott hooked the remaining bag, containing Jacob's bottles and other essential items, over his shoulder and placed a hand on the small of John's back. Without knowing it he mimicked both Joel and Jeff before him and gently pressed John in the direction of the door.

~#~

They walked slowly through the hospital like this until they got to the lobby when, without warning, John stopped dead.

Scott was unprepared for the sudden stop and had to pull himself up sharply in order not to overtake his brother. "Whoa, Johnny," he said as he turned to face the younger man. "Why the sudden stop?"

John's eyes flicked from Scott's face to the door, down to Jacob and then back to Scott again. "It's just…" he stopped and then swallowed before trying again. "…give me a moment, Scott. It's the first time I'm going to have taken him further than the garden and when I step through that door I'm taking him away from the only place he's known since he left home with Rosie all those weeks ago."

Scott looked around them and gently manhandled John slowly away from the centre of the doorway. "OK," he said quietly. "We're alright here for a couple of minutes. Just take your time and remember that nothing will stop you taking Jacob out of here once you're ready. Just look at the little guy, does he look worried about leaving with you?"

John looked down at the sleeping child in his arms and chuckled. "I guess not," he replied. "I'm sorry, Scott. It's just me, I know. It just seems like a big step."

Scott nodded and then frowned slightly and shrugged. "I'll say it again, take your time and we'll go when you're ready. When we get to the car are you going to sit in the back?"

John raised his head to look at Scott. "I hadn't really thought about it," he admitted. "I guess that would be for the best. If we don't disturb him too much getting him strapped in then hopefully he'll sleep the whole way back but if he wakes up then at least I'll be able to get to him easily."

Scott nodded again. "OK then, that's what we'll do. You're looking brighter, are you ready to go?"

John stood for a moment and thought about it. "I guess so," he said eventually and then, without waiting for Scott, he stepped forwards and into the bright afternoon sunshine.


	64. Chapter 64

~#~ (Chapter 64)

The journey from the hospital turned out to be trouble free. John managed to strap Jacob into his new car seat without waking the boy and when Scott checked the rear-view mirror prior to pulling onto the highway he discovered that John had fallen asleep as well.

Scott pulled the car up to the front of the hotel and attracted the attention of one of the porters who hurried over to help him. The porter took Jacob's bags into the hotel while Scott unclipped the straps holding the little boy into his seat. Careful not to jostle the tot, Scott rested Jacob against his shoulder and then walked round to the other side of the car and gently shook John awake.

"Johnny, we're here," he said quietly. "It's time to wake up now."

John looked around blearily and smiled when he saw how secure Jacob looked in Scott's arms. "Tired," he whined and then blushed when he realised he'd said it out loud.

"I know you are, buddy," Scott replied. "But you're too big to carry so you're going to have to get upstairs under your own steam. I've got the little'un and the bags are sorted so you can aim straight for your bed."

John snorted and then, using the driver's seat for leverage, clambered out of the car. He got himself upstairs without any mishaps and once Scott assured him that Jacob was fine, he collapsed onto his bed.

Scott kicked his shoes off under John's bed and then took Jacob through to his own room and warmed up a bottle of milk. He sat on the sofa by the window and offered Jacob the bottle only to find that the little boy managed barely a third of it before he was asleep again.

Scott chuckled gently and stroked Jacob's silky hair. "I didn't think you were really ready to wake up," he whispered. "Let's give Daddy a few more minutes to get into a properly deep sleep then you can go in and join him."

~#~

Scott sat with Jacob on his knee for a while and then carefully stood up and carried him into John's room. John was flat on his back with his right arm lying across his stomach. His left arm lay loosely on the bedcovers beside him and Scott leaned over and gently laid Jacob in the space between the arm and John's chest.

John instinctively rolled towards the small warm body beside him and, without waking, wrapped both arms around his son. Scott smiled at this and, after checking that Jacob was secure, wandered back into the bathroom.

Sitting on the closed lid of the toilet, Scott pressed the button on his watch that would connect him to his father. Jeff answered almost immediately, not expecting to be contacted via his watch unless there was an emergency.

"Scott," he said. "Is everything alright?"

"Hey, Father," Scott replied in barely more than a whisper. "Everything's fine, I just wanted you to see something. Hang on a minute. Oh, and please don't talk until I get back in here. You'll see why in a moment."

Jeff frowned in confusion but nodded at Scott and remained quiet. Scott removed the watch from his arm and slipped back through the door into John's room. He padded quietly over to the bed and turned the watch so Jeff could see the sleeping pair. He moved the watch slowly up to John's shoulder level so Jeff could see how John had snuggled Jacob against him and then wandered silently back through the bathroom and sat down on his bed.

"Now you see why you had to be quiet?" he said with a chuckle as he fixed the watch back on his wrist. "I don't know how long Jacob will sleep for but John could do with staying that way for the rest of the afternoon."

Jeff laughed quietly and then sighed. "I take it he hasn't been sleeping well again?"

Scott shrugged. "He was alright up until last night when he wouldn't stay settled. I ended up staying in with him after talking to you but I have to admit that we didn't really get all that much proper sleep."

Jeff nodded. "That figures," he replied. "This is John we're talking about after all. Has he been eating?"

"Yes," Scott confirmed with a nod. "Again, not so much today but right up until dinner last night he'd been doing fine. Hopefully he'll be a heck of a lot less stressed when he wakes up and then he can eat a proper dinner tonight. I'd guess that we'll be having room service for the next few days while everything settles down but after that…well, who knows."

"Who indeed," Jeff replied with a chuckle. "So, apart from John stressing over things he probably didn't need to be stressing over did everything else go OK? You're obviously all back at the hotel so that part went well but did you encounter any problems at the hospital?"

Scott shook his head. "No. Thankfully everything went pretty much to plan. Johnny wouldn't let Jacob out of his sight from the moment we walked in so he ended up coming with us to see the curator, the doctor and then to lunch. By that point John had obviously persuaded himself that something was going to go wrong and things were quite…um…fraught."

"Hence why they're now both asleep in the middle of the afternoon," Jeff commented. "How are you holding up, Scott? I know you think you can survive on little or no sleep but you know you can't really."

Scott snorted. "I'm fine, Father. It's not like I've been doing anything particularly strenuous since I got here. I've carried plenty of bags and we've been on a couple of runs but other than that…well, I haven't been even half as active as normal."

Jeff nodded his understanding. "Well, just don't forget to look after yourself," he warned. "I know how you can get when you're looking after one of the others and needless to say I want all three of you safe, sound and healthy when you all finally get home."

"I know," Scott agreed quietly. "…and we will be. I'm fine and John's pretty much OK and he'll be a heck of a lot better when he finally gets to go home. Jacob was checked by the doctors this morning and apart from the obvious problem with his arm he received a clean bill of health. All in all we don't seem to be doing too badly at the moment."

Jeff nodded. "That's good to hear," he said with a smile. "Did the doctor give you any idea of a timeframe on Jacob's arm when they examined him this morning or are we still looking at a couple of weeks?"

Scott shrugged. "That was the one thing they didn't look at," he replied. "They want John to take him back in a week's time and they're going to x-ray the arm and update us when they've looked at the films. I think John's hoping the cast will come off then but I got the distinct impression the doctors are thinking the week after."

"And with any luck his passport will have arrived by then," Jeff said with a frown. "So much for it being fast-tracked. I think it needs to be chased up in the next couple of days."

Scott nodded. "We can do that," he offered. "I'm not really sure what we're going to be doing now that Jacob's out but I'm sure that it couldn't hurt to take him into the embassy when we go to find out what's happening."

Jeff smiled. "That's true," he said. "...just keep an eye on John's stress levels while you're there." Jeff stopped and shook his head. "...as if I needed to tell you that."

Scott chuckled and then looked away from the watch and towards the bathroom door. "I'm going to have to go now, Father or Jacob's going to wake Johnny. I'll speak to you tomorrow."

"Not a problem, son," Jeff said. "…but tell your brother that I expect to hear from him at some point in the next few days too. Now get going."


	65. Chapter 65

~#~ (Chapter 65)

Jacob had quietened down by the time Scott got into the room. John was sitting on the edge of the bed with his son over one shoulder and was rocking gently from side to side as he patted the little boy's back.

"Sorry," Scott whispered. "I was trying to get in here before he woke you up but I was talking to Dad so I didn't hear him soon enough."

John smiled sleepily. "It's OK," he replied and then leaned his cheek against Jacob's back. "We're alright in here, aren't we, little man?"

Jacob gurgled in response and Scott chuckled. "He seems happy enough, anyway. Do you want to give him to me then you can get some more sleep? You've been disturbed twice now so you haven't really had as much rest as you think."

Indecision crossed John's face for a moment until Scott held out his arms for the baby. "Give him here, Johnny. You're processing slowly so you obviously need more sleep. I'll amuse the little'un for a couple of hours and then, when you get up, we can think about dinner."

"OK," John mumbled quietly and then gently handed Jacob over to Scott. Before his brother could move away however, John reached back over and gave the little boy a hug and a kiss on the forehead. "Be careful with him," he murmured and then leaned back on the bed before rolling over and facing the wall.

Scott leaned down and patted John on the shoulder before adjusting his grip on Jacob. "Come on you, let's leave Daddy in peace."

Scott hooked a bag of toys over the end of one finger and carried it and Jacob through to his own room.

~#~

John finally emerged almost two hours later. Scott heard him using the bathroom and then chuckled when his decidedly less-than-immaculate brother pushed his way through the adjoining door.

Scott was sitting on the sofa with his feet up on the coffee table which was liberally covered in playing cards. Jacob, wearing only a diaper, lay with his back against Scott's chest and was giggling loudly at the brightly coloured finger puppets that were waving around in front of him.

John wandered over and stopped beside his brother. "What on earth's been going on in here?" he asked. "I take it they're Jacob's clothes in the corner of the bathroom? I don't suppose I want to know why he's not wearing them any more."

Jacob looked up at his father and squealed loudly. John scooped the little boy up and blew a loud, raspberry against his bare stomach. Jacob let out a peel of laughter so John repeated the manoeuvre before settling Jacob back into his arms with a sigh.

"Well?" he said looking down at Scott, who he suddenly realised, was only wearing a pair of black jeans and the muscle-shirt that he tended to wear beneath his smarter outer clothes. "Whatever have the pair of you been up to in here?"

Scott leaned his head back on the sofa and looked up at John. "Pair you say?…hmm…well yes, _pear_ is exactly what we've been up to. Apparently pear and Jacob aren't well paired. Whether it's pear in general or just that particular pear I don't know but I guess I won't be the one testing to find out."

John's brow crinkled in confusion. "What?" he asked. "Say that again, Scott. And try putting the words together in an order that actually makes sense this time."

Scott snorted out a laugh. "We came in here. We played. We got the munchies and we called down for room service. Room service brought fruit. Among the fruit was a pear. I peeled and sliced the pear and Jacob thoroughly enjoyed eating…and playing with it. Ten minutes later the pear, along with at least half a bottle of milk reappeared. I figured it was warm enough in here that we didn't need to risk disturbing you by hunting around for clothes so…well…here we are."

"So, not just Jacob's clothes in the bathroom then?" John asked with a twinkle in his eye and then laughed when Scott shook his head.

"No, they're definitely not just Jacob's," Scott confirmed with a chuckle. "You know, I'm fast beginning to think I didn't bring enough clothes with me and I might end up having to go out to get myself some more."

John nodded. "Me too. If you stay here for much longer then I'm going to run out as well. I can't send anything back for washing if no-one's travelling between here and home."

"Well I'm intending to stay here until either Dad summons me back or Jacob is finally ready to leave. Apart from chasing up the passport, I haven't got anything in particular planned for the next few days so there's no reason we can't go shopping…again."

"God, we're getting as bad as Penny," John replied with a chuckle. "Especially bearing in mind that Alan's been shopping for the past few days as well."

Scott smiled and then dropped his feet off the table and stood up. "That's for another day, anyway. You…" he stopped and poked John hard in the chest. "…have eaten virtually nothing since breakfast which..." He stopped and skipped deftly out of reach when John attempted to poke him back "…you also ate very little of. Most of the point of me being here is to look after you…or rather, to make sure you look after yourself which, quite frankly, you haven't done today. I understand why you were off this morning but now that we're all back here the stresses of the day are null and void. You…" He jumped forwards and jabbed John in the chest again before leaping back out of reach. "…have to decide whether you want to eat in here or if you want to risk taking the mess monster downstairs for dinner. I kind of figured you'd want to stay in but I'm leaving it up to you to make the final decision."

John judged the gap between Scott and himself and decided that he was never going to manage to catch Scott with Jacob in his arms. "That's so not fair," he complained and then burst out laughing when Jacob made a grab for his lip when he spoke. "Uncle Scott's right," he said and then gently poked Jacob's pudgy little stomach which made the boy giggle. "You _are_ a little monster. Scott, we'll eat in here if that's alright with you. I'm not sure I can face getting changed, only to go downstairs, get completely trashed and then come back here and get changed again. He looked down at his sleep-creased clothes and chuckled. "Sure, I might change into something less…crumpled, but if we're not going out then at least it can be something comfortable."

Scott nodded and leaned down to pull a T-shirt out of one of the drawers. He pulled it over his head, tucked it in his jeans and then held his arms out for Jacob. "Hand him over," he said and clapped his hands together which made Jacob jiggle around in John's arms. "I'll get him into some clothes while you get changed."

John smiled and rolled his eyes. "It's bad enough with just one of you here. Between you, Dad, Grandma and Tin-Tin I'm going to be lucky to see Jacob once I finally get him home."

Scott shrugged and lifted Jacob clear of John's arms. "I don't know, there you were the other day complaining that you were going to be doing everything on your own and when we offer to help…" Scott headed out into the bathroom knowing full well that John would follow him. "Your Daddy just can't make up his mind now, can he, eh? He wants to be alone but he wants people with him. He wants help but he doesn't want help. Humph, no wonder he needs his big brother here to sort him out."

John snorted as he eavesdropped on Scott's one-sided conversation. He knew he was being awkward and contradictory in some of the things he said but he'd been through such a myriad of emotions over the past few weeks that he wasn't altogether sure exactly what he wanted some of the time, nor how to go about getting it.

~#~

Scott took Jacob over to the bed, sat down and then tipped the little boy backwards onto the soft covers. He set out on a gentle tickle attack and by the time John dropped a set of clothes on the bed beside him, Scott had reduced the little boy to a giggling, hiccup-ridden wreck.

"We're definitely not eating out now," John commented as he looked over Scott's shoulder and smiled at Jacob who beamed back at him. "You overexcite him much more and we're never going to get any of his dinner to stay down."

Scott chuckled and lifted Jacob gently from the bed. "I suppose I may as well change everything, while I'm at it," he said and then carried the boy back through into the bathroom where the diapers were kept. John shook his head and set about quickly changing his clothes while Scott was out of the room.


	66. Chapter 66

~#~ (Chapter 66)

Dinner, via room service, turned out to be a lively affair. Jacob, who had lost most of his afternoon snack, was hungry so he ate well and made surprisingly little mess. John finally relaxed and found that he was ravenously hungry and Scott smiled broadly as he watched his brother dive into a plate of the now infamous but not-quite-as-good-as-Kyrano's chicken wings.

~#~

After an uneventful night the three Tracys rose late and spent the morning pottering around in their rooms. John gave Jacob a bath, supervised by Scott who sat on the closed toilet seat and chatted quietly to them. After lunch they drove to the beach and wandered slowly along it to get some much-needed fresh air.

Not long into the walk it became apparent to both Scott and John that they had forgotten one very vital item when they had carried out their mammoth shopping trip. Living on a small island, neither of them had thought about the necessity of buying a stroller for Jacob and, for whatever reason, it hadn't been mentioned by the assistants in the various shops they had visited either. The boys soon discovered that carrying a well-built seven-month-old was harder on the arms than they could have imagined and eventually Scott left John and Jacob sitting on a bench and jogged back to get the car.

"No matter what, Johnny, we are buying a stroller in the morning," he said with a grin as he wandered over to where he'd left John and Jacob and swept the little boy into the air. "You, young man, are just too awkward to carry very far."

~#~

Neither Scott nor John bought a stroller the next day. They ended up back at the hospital instead.

The morning started well; breakfast was eaten, Jacob was tidied and they set off for the shops. Then, an hour and a half later, Scott saved the life of a three year old girl. The girl's mother had asked her to wait quietly by the passenger door of her car while she got her baby brother strapped into his seat. She didn't do what she was told and had wandered around the front of the car instead and was heading towards the busy road when Scott spotted her.

As she stepped out into the traffic, Scott reacted. Sprinting away from John, he darted between the cars and scooped the girl up into his arms. If luck had been on his side then his momentum would have carried him across the road and out of harms way.

Unfortunately, luck wasn't on Scott's side at that moment.

As he pulled the girl up off the ground he found himself being clipped by one of the passing cars. The hit itself wasn't particularly hard but, with the girl's extra weight tucked against his chest, it was enough to knock the eldest Tracy boy clean off his feet.

Rolling himself around the girl, Scott protected her as he was thrown back into the line of parked cars. He momentarily heard a woman screaming for her baby and then his head came into contact with the bumper of a large blue SUV and he heard no more.

~#~

Several hours later, Scott slowly opened his eyes. He was immediately assaulted from above by a glaring white light and he quickly slammed them shut again. He heard a dull click and breathed a sigh of relief as the light filtering through his screwed-up eyelids dimmed considerably.

"You're awake. Thank God." It was obvious that John had been sitting beside Scott's bed, watching and waiting for him to wake up. Relief was clearly evident in John's voice and Scott briefly wondered how long he'd been asleep before he forced himself to open his eyes again to reassure his brother that he was alright.

"Wha…?" he said groggily. He cleared his throat and then opened his eyes fully and tried again. "The girl? Johnny, tell me she made it."

John squatted down until he was level with Scott's face. "She made it, Scott," he replied with a smile, "…and more to the point she spent a heck of a lot less time in here than you. The paramedics insisted that you both needed taking in, you because…well, you were completely out of it and she, well she really just came in to be checked over. She's got a few bumps and a couple of bruises but other than that she's just a bit shaken, as was her mother. Her husband left her before their second baby was born so it's only her and the kids and she says she's finding it really hard. I…um…I paid for Jenny, that's the little girl's name, by the way, I paid for her being checked over. It's…kind of my fault we ended up here. I…I…they were going to take you somewhere else because Jenny's mother didn't have any insurance but I insisted on here because…well, we know it's safe."

Scott rolled onto his back and squinted up at the tiled ceiling. Private hospital rooms didn't very much across the world and for all Scott knew he could have been lying in one in Australia, America or any number of the more westernised European countries. He reached up and gingerly pressed his finger against a throbbing patch on the right hand side of his forehead. He found a raised bandage covering the area and he lowered his hand to reach out for his brother.

"How did I hit my head?" he asked softly. "I remember the car swiping me and I remember falling but I don't remember either hitting anything or coming to a stop." He paused and lifted his head up just enough to look round the room. "Johnny, where's the baby?"

John grasped Scott's outstretched hand and gently squeezed his fingers. "He's upstairs. I…well I…um…Once the paramedics decided they were taking you in, I kind of swiped the car keys from your pocket so I could follow the ambulance here. Once I'd got you registered I took Jacob upstairs and asked the girls if they'd mind looking after him for a while. Scott, he's only been out of here for a couple of days but they were all over him like he was a long lost friend or something. I went to check on him about an hour ago and was told that he'd fallen asleep with a bottle about five minutes before. Anyway, I'm supposed to be telling someone when you wake up then I guess they'll be wanting to check you over. They put you through the CT scanner while you were out and you haven't broken anything, in case you were wondering. I'll pop back upstairs while you're with the doctor and when I come back down we'll hopefully find out whether you can go back to the hotel tonight or not."

Scott nodded briefly and then grimaced before sinking back into the pillows. "I guess I'll just wait here then," he said quietly and then closed his eyes. "Send the doc in, Johnny, the sooner I speak to him, the sooner we can get out of here."

John stood up and shook his head, a pointless manoeuvre seeing as how Scott still had his eyes closed. "I'll ask someone to come and see you," he said vaguely, not convinced that Scott was well enough to be released that evening but knowing in his heart that his brother wouldn't be spending the night in the hospital, no matter what the doctor said. "…and I'll be back to see you in a bit."

Scott remained silent and John had the distinct impression that he'd fallen back to sleep. He shook his head again and wandered from the room.

~#~

As John expected, Scott didn't stay in the hospital overnight. Despite being clearly not well enough to leave, Scott had insisted on doing exactly that. John ended up driving him silently back to the hotel with a supply of painkillers, several ice packs and a severe telling off from the doctor.

John pushed his brother down into his bed as soon as they entered the room. Scott complained that he would be more comfortable in his own room and reminded John that he was going to need his bed before too long. John scoffed at this and told Scott that he wouldn't be able to sleep without watching over him and that by keeping Scott in his room he could keep an eye on both Scott and Jacob at the same time, even if it meant sleeping on the sofa.

Having put down all of Scott's objections, John sat Jacob in the travel cot with a couple of toys and then wandered into the bathroom to get a towel. Despite the fact his brother hadn't complained that his hip was troubling him, John had realised that he was in pain the moment he had climbed out of the car. He activated one of the ice packs, wrapped it loosely in the towel and then walked over to the bed and handed it to Scott.

Scott took the pack from John without raising himself from the bed and rested it against his hip with a quiet groan.

"Johnny don't. Just…don't," he pleaded quietly. "You know I couldn't stay in there. You would've been here on your own with Jacob and I'm supposed to be here to support you in that."

John snorted and then smiled when Jacob giggled at the noise. He squatted down in the gap between the cot and the bed and reached across so he could rest a hand on both Scott and Jacob's heads. "I understand," he said quietly. "But you need to remember…and you've never been all that great on remembering this, we're here to support you as well. With the exception of using the bathroom, you are not going to move from that bed until tomorrow. You will take your tablets, on schedule, in about an hour and then, with any luck, you'll sleep through until the morning. You're going to be sore and stiff once the bruises come out so I guess we'll be having a lazy couple of days until you're properly back on your feet."

Scott opened his mouth to protest but a firm look from John stopped him before he could put voice to his complaints.

"Don't even think about it. Not only were you hit by a car this morning and knocked out cold for far longer than I'm comfortable with, but you've signed yourself out of hospital against medical advice. I know you did it so as not to leave me on my own with the baby…" John paused and ran his hand down Jacob's head. "…and don't think I don't appreciate you thinking of me like that, I do but Scott, you're your own worst enemy. Don't forget that I know what you're like. You'll get up in the morning and you'll act like you're perfectly OK…well, I'm telling you now, that's not going to happen. You will not put a front on for me. If you hurt then you take the tablets. If they knock you out for a bit…well good, it's probably what you need. If you're asleep then you're not going to be hurting and if you spend the next couple of days out of it then so be it."

Scott tried to frown but the effect was marred by the sticky bandage across his forehead. "Wow," he said quietly. "That was quite a speech and I suppose you'll set Father on me if I don't behave?"

"Oh no, Scott. I'll go one better than that," John said, grinned broadly. "If you don't behave then I'll call Virgil."


	67. Chapter 67

~#~ (Chapter 67)

As John suspected, Scott was sore in the morning. He, John and Jacob remained in their room all day and by mid-afternoon the bruise on his side was hot and uncomfortable. After a long soak in the bath he dosed himself up with tablets and had another early night, this time in his own bed so as to give John some time alone with Jacob.

~#~

The next morning, when he got out of bed, Scott stood in front of the mirror and winced. The bruise, which had been hot and red the day before had begun to turn black and blue overnight. He gingerly lifted his arms and tried a couple of gentle twists before grimacing and lowering his arms back down.

He downed a couple of tablets and then sat on the bed and slowly dressed himself. He pressed an ear to the bathroom door to check John wasn't using the room and then wandered slowly inside.

After he'd finished shaving, Scott knocked gently on the door to John's room and, getting no reply, quietly pushed the door open to peek inside.

John and Jacob had obviously been up for some time as the remains of the little boy's breakfast sat on the high chair, covered with clear plastic wrap. What surprised Scott though was that neither his brother, nor his nephew, were evident in the room. He scanned the room for some sort of note that would let him know where John had disappeared to. It had never been John's style to go anywhere without leaving some sort of indication as to where he'd gone and this was something that had differentiated the second-born from his siblings during their teenage years.

Scott couldn't see any sort of obvious note but before he could become worried he heard the door unlock. Moments later the door swung open and John, with Jacob in his arms, stepped through.

Because he was concentrating on Jacob, John didn't immediately notice his brother and jumped back several feet when Scott moved.

"Jeez, Scott," he gasped. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

Scott chuckled and then held his arms out for Jacob. He carefully took the little boy from John and tucked him snuggly against his uninjured side. "It's no more than I nearly got when I came in here and found you two missing," he countered. "Where've you been?"

"Only down to reception," John replied as he slipped an envelope from his back pocket and waved it at Scott. "I got a call to say there was a courier downstairs who needed my signature. That's mine and only mine, not to be signed for by anyone other than me."

A frown formed on Scott's forehead. "What?" he said as he tried to make a grab for the envelope. "…are you on about?"

John pulled it back out of Scott's reach and then opened it and carefully tipped out the contents. He held up a small, leather-bound book and opened it so Scott could see what it was. "It's his passport, Scott," he said with a smile. "Jacob is now officially an American citizen, albeit one born on foreign soil but an American citizen none the less. This means we just need the hospital to sign off on his arm and then we can go home."

Scott's frown faded and was replaced with a smile. "That's great news, Johnny." He gave Jacob a gentle jiggle and addressed the boy. "You hear that, little one?" he asked. "You're all official now and you can fly out just as soon as your arm's all sorted. You need to get those little bones of yours all knitted back together and then you can finally meet your other uncles, your aunty Tin-Tin and all the other people who are just itching to get their hands on you."

John reached over and stroked the side of Jacob's face. "Make the most of the peace and quiet here," he whispered. "There'll be none of it for some time, once we're home."

Scott smiled again and then sat down on the edge of John's bed with Jacob. "That's true," he said, looking up at John. "I have a feeling the girls are going to be playing pass-the-baby for quite some time."

John snorted. "...and don't forget about Granddad," he said with a grin. "He'll probably be the worst of the lot, especially as he's been stuck at home now while you've been here."

Scott nodded. "True," he replied quietly as he laid Jacob down on the bed and stroked his pudgy little stomach. "…but I wouldn't have it any other way."

~#~

John and Scott stayed in the room for the rest of the morning and then decided to risk having lunch in the hotel restaurant. Jacob behaved better than either of them had hoped and he ate well until it came to his pudding which he threw on the floor. John apologised profusely to the woman who was sent to clear up the mess but she simply smiled and tickled Jacob under the chin and told them that she had three children and five grandchildren so she was more than used to the mess.

Nearly an hour after getting back to the room, Jacob fell asleep in John's arms. He held the little boy for a while and then put him gently down into the cot and covered him with a light sheet.

"I'm going to nip out and get that stroller so we can get out of here for a while tomorrow," he told Scott. "Will you be OK here for a bit?"

Scott nodded and looked down at Jacob. "We'll be fine," he replied. "…and it's about time we all got some fresh air."


	68. Chapter 68

~#~ (Chapter 68)

A couple of days later, John, Scott and Jacob were back at the hospital. To John's relief, the doctors successfully x-rayed Jacob's arm without needing to sedate him but, as Scott had suspected, they decided that the cast needed to stay on for another week.

After the appointment was over, John insisted on carrying Jacob out of the hospital and quickly strode across the foyer and away from the building. Scott, guessing that his brother needed a moment to himself, trailed slowly behind him with the empty stroller and only approached him when he got back to the car.

John strapped Jacob into his seat and ruffled his hair gently before closing the door and climbing into his own seat. Scott watched the silent interaction between the two and his heart dropped. John hadn't said a word since the doctor had given his verdict on Jacob's arm and Scott knew this usually meant that his studious younger sibling was extremely upset. He slipped quietly into the driver's seat of the car and pulled out of the parking space.

~#~

Eventually, as he drove down the highway, Scott risked a glance at his brother.

John had his head turned away from Scott and was staring sightlessly out of the window. His shoulders were tense and Scott could hear the occasional catch in his breathing. He guessed that John was trying his hardest not to cry but that his emotions were gradually getting the better of him.

Scott thought for a moment and then changed his heading. After a while he pulled into one of the more secluded car parks that served the beach and switched off the engine. Jacob had been asleep for about ten minutes and Scott took a deep, cleansing breath before resting his hand gently on John's arm. "It's only one more week," he whispered. "That's all. Just one more week."

John let out a loud sniff and then turned to face Scott. "I just want to go home," he said quietly. He paused as he looked at Jacob who was still sleeping peacefully in his seat. "I want to take my son and I want to go home. Is that really too much to ask?"

The tears that John had so valiantly kept at bay finally started falling and Scott pulled him into a hug. "It's not too much to ask," he replied. "…and I know it must feel like you've been here forever but Johnny, you've just got to remember that this time next week we'll be on our way to the airport…we'll be on our way home."

John nodded against Scott's shoulder. "Promise?" he said quietly.

"I promise," Scott replied as he ran his hand firmly across John's shoulders. "You heard what the doctor said. Jacob's cast is only staying on another week to make 100% certain that there'll be no repercussions in the future. It's definitely coming off next week and then you're free to take him home. If we get organised then we can load anything that we're not going to need into the plane the day before his appointment. We can run everything else to the airport once we've finished using it and then, if you want, we can go straight from the hospital to the plane. Does that sound like a plan?"

John snorted quietly and then pulled himself out of Scott's arms and sat up. He scrubbed at his eyes and then looked bashfully towards his brother. "Yeah," he whispered. "It sounds like a good plan, although I think we probably need to stop and eat somewhere between the hospital and the airport. We'll also have to get some sort of packed lunch in case a certain someone gets an attack of the munchies during the flight."

John left his sentence deliberately vague but by the flush that briefly ran across Scott's face it was obvious to John that Scott had realised the 'certain someone' could have meant himself rather than the baby.

"OK, Johnny, you win," he said with a grin. "Hospital, food, plane, home. What could possibly go wrong?"

~#~

John was still in a slightly depressed state when he got up the next morning. Despite Scott's promise that they would be going home the next week John was convinced that something was going to stop it happening.

After breakfast he told Scott that he needed some time to think. He strapped Jacob into the stroller and Scott followed him to the door of the hotel where he set out on foot.

Scott watched John walk away and let out a deep sigh. He wandered back to his room and flopped down onto his bed to think. He needed a way of distracting John for at least a couple of days or it was going to turn out to be a _very_ long week.

~#~

Nearly an hour later, Scott walked through the main doors of the hospital and headed towards the reception desk. The girl behind the desk was stuck on the phone so he propped himself against a nearby wall and watched the comings and goings around him until she was done.

"Sir?" Scott was distracted from his people-watching by the receptionist's call. "I'm sorry about the wait. What is it you need?"

Scott peeled himself away from the wall and leaned on the desk with a smile. "I'm looking for someone," he said quietly. "…a nurse. She's looked after my brother several times over the past few weeks and I'd really like a word with her."

The receptionist nodded. "I'll see what I can do," she replied. "…within reason. I can't give out personal details for any of the staff but if she's here today then I'll point you in the right direction. Who is it that we're looking for?"

Scott paused for a moment and then grinned. "This is the point where my plan might fall down," he admitted. "All I know is that her name's Jayne, she's about…" Scott stepped back and held his hand up level with his shoulder "…yay high and she has got black hair. Does that help?"

The receptionist looked past Scott and grinned. "I suggest you turn round, Sir. We only have one Jayne and she's currently heading straight for us."

Scott turned to look in the direction the receptionist had pointed. Jayne had clearly just arrived and was juggling with a large coffee, her car keys and her handbag at the same time as trying to remove her coat. All this was being done while the small woman sped down the corridor towards the reception desk.

Scott stepped forwards and lifted the coffee from Jayne's hand just as it started to tip. Jayne froze for a moment and then cautiously looked upwards. She took in the gentle expression on Scott's face, grinned and then reached over and dumped her handbag into his arms. She stuffed the car keys in her coat pocket and then finally finished taking it off.

Once her coat was folded over one arm, Jayne held her hand out for the rest of her belongings. Scott handed over the bag and the coffee and raised an eyebrow. "It's not often a girl throws all her worldly goods at me," he announced with a grin. "Saving your coffee doesn't make me a trustworthy person, you know."

Jayne smiled and motioned for Scott to follow her down the corridor where she stopped him in front of a door marked 'Staff Only'. "No," she said quietly. "…but you're one of Jefferson Tracy's sons, unless I'm very much mistaken and that does make you trustworthy. Let me dump this lot…" she wiggled her bag and coat. "…and then I'll be with you."

Jayne swung herself through the door which swung closed behind her. Scott rolled his eyes at the wooden door and smirked. Jayne was just as fiery as John had described and Scott could well see how the diminutive little nurse could have controlled their father.

The door swung open and Jayne stepped out. "Hello again," she said with a grin. "Let's take a walk. I don't officially start work for another twenty minutes and I'd like to know how John and the baby are getting on."

Scott opened his mouth to speak and then snapped it shut again when he realised that Jayne had moved away and was waiting for him to follow her. He shook his head and the pair then set off through the hospital together.

~#~

After leaving the hospital Scott called into the funeral home and collected the casket containing Rosie's ashes. He then drove to the airport and gained access to the plane where he wrapped the casket in an emergency blanket and fastened it securely into one of the overhead lockers.

That done, Scott drove slowly back to the hotel.

~#~

John was sitting on the bed, reading to Jacob when Scott walked into the room. He looked up at Scott and smiled before turning back to the book.

Scott swung round and perched on the bed beside his brother. "You feeling better?" he asked and then chuckled when John added the words "Yes, thank you. I just needed to clear my head. Where have you been?" in to the middle of the story he was reading.

"I was arranging some things for us to do over the next few days and I ran a couple of errands while I was at it. Oh, here…" Scott dropped a packet of sweets onto John's lap. "Just in case you were in need of a sugar boost."


	69. Chapter 69

~#~ (Chapter 69)

The rest of the day was quiet and peaceful, as was the next day when Scott and John took Jacob for a long walk down the beach.

The next morning, over breakfast, Scott suggested that they might want to spend the next few days visiting some of the local tourist attractions. It would, he pointed out, make the time go faster and get them out of the hotel for a while.

John raised an eyebrow at this and was about to make a comment when Scott leaned over and handed him a leaflet.

"A chocolate factory?" John queried. "You want to visit a chocolate factory?"

Scott shrugged. "Why not? It might be fun and don't forget how you raved on about the Lake Champlain factory for weeks after you visited it."

John glared at him. "Maybe I did," he agreed. "…but I was in college at the time, Scott. Chocolate was a staple part of my diet back then."

"And you're gonna try and tell me that's changed?" Scott asked with a grin. "You think I don't know about the sugar-rich contraband that gets smuggled onto Three every time it goes up to Five? There's no way you're going to persuade me it's all for Alan."

John snorted. "Damn," he replied. "Busted. Don't tell Alan that you know; he's always been rather pleased by the fact that we've never been caught with it. I guess we owe you one for that and I'll admit that a lot of it is mine. It's one of the few guilty pleasures that we can actually enjoy while we're up there."

"I understand that," Scott said quietly. "…that's why I never said anything to Father, although I'll bet you he knows about it anyway. So, are we on for the chocolate factory or not?"

John grinned. "Definitely."

~#~

John realised that he'd been set up as soon as Scott 'just happened' to bump into Jayne and her flatmate Susan in the foyer of the chocolate factory. Jayne was carrying a huge picnic basket, Susan had a blanket and a big bottle of juice and neither of them seemed particularly surprised to see the Tracy brothers there.

Scott took charge of the picnic basket and went to buy the tickets while John, Jacob and the girls went outside to wait for him on the neatly manicured lawn in front of the visitor's centre.

When he returned, Scott found that John had managed to pack the blanket and bottle of drink into the carrier beneath the stroller. His brother was talking quietly with Jayne while Susan walked around the lawn with Jacob and chattered to him about the pictures on the many, brightly coloured posters that stuck up from the flower beds.

"I got tickets for the tour and also for the river cruise," he announced and he leant down and rested the picnic basket on the grass in front of Jayne. "I hope that's alright with everybody. I'm reliably informed that the stroller will be fine on the boat, although I'm guessing that Jacob isn't going to be spending much time in it today." Scott nodded his head in Susan's direction and smiled. The chubby blonde had manipulated Jacob's hand in such a way that he could stroke the soft fur on a cheerful-looking costumed character who had just stepped out of the visitor's centre. The furry character, a large, brown bear, was holding himself still so as not to scare Jacob and the young boy was squealing happily.

Jayne smiled. "It looks like Jacob's gained himself another adoring fan," she commented. "He seems to have settled nicely since he's left the hospital and I'm glad to see he's just as charming as ever."

Scott hung an arm across John's shoulders. "Of course he is," he said. "He's a Tracy, it's in his blood."

John let out a disbelieving snort and slipped out from beneath Scott's arm. "I think that's maybe as far as that conversation needs to go or it'll end up deteriorating into just how _un_charming Gordon can get at times."

Scott chuckled. "That's true," he agreed. "Like that time…"

"Scott, no!" John made a grab at his brother who evaded him and then shot away across the lawn with John in hot pursuit. Despite feeling rather silly, Scott nipped in and out of the various people who were milling around outside the visitor's centre and several of them stopped to watch as the two handsome men chased one another around in a carefree fashion.

Eventually, Scott accelerated toward Susan and swept Jacob carefully up into his arms. He smiled widely and barely had time to cry "Safe" before John caught up and wrapped his arms around both his brother and his son.

"You're nuts. You know that, don't you," John asked with a grin as he released his hold on Scott. "Completely and utterly nuts."

Scott grinned and then shrugged. "This one going back in there?" he asked and nodded between Jacob and the stroller. "…or is somebody carrying him."

"I was going to say that I'd carry him for a bit," John replied. "…but I'll need someone to push the stroller."

Scott rolled his eyes and handed Jacob to John before picking the picnic basket up and dumping it into the stroller. "There," he said. "…now you can carry him. I'll take the basket out when you want to put him back."

John smiled and then turned and started to walk back towards the building and Sarah fell in beside him. Jayne watched them go and then realised that Scott was waiting for her to move. She turned to meet Scott's eyes and grinned when he winked in response. The impromptu game of chase had allowed both the brothers to let off some steam and had reduced some of the tension that had been showing around John's eyes.

"You're a clever man, Scott Tracy," she murmured. "…and John's lucky to have you looking out for him."

~#~

Jacob stayed awake and cheerful until almost halfway through the river cruise when he suddenly, and very vocally, demanded a bottle. John shushed him for a moment and then made his apologies to Scott and the girls and moved off into a quiet corner of the catamaran's spacious seating area. He sat down, popped the teat of the bottle in Jacob's mouth and then smiled at the contented noises that the little boy let out as he sucked on his drink. When the milk was finished John lifted Jacob up against his shoulder and gently patted his back until he fell asleep.

Scott came to find him about twenty minutes later and smiled softly when he saw that John was rocking gently back and forth despite the fact that Jacob was completely settled against him. "Hey, Johnny," he whispered. "You doing OK down here?"

John nodded gently. "Sure," he replied. "I'm just watching the world going by while Jacob has his nap. I reckon we've got another ten minutes or so left before we dock, do you have anything in particular planned for this afternoon?"

Scott shrugged. "I was going to leave the rest of today up to the girls," he admitted. "But I have an idea for what we can do tomorrow."

John smiled. "And would that be just the three of us or we 'accidentally' going to meet up with someone else tomorrow?" he asked with a twinkle in his eye. "I've been thinking back to try and work out when you had the chance to set all this up and the only time I can think you've been away from me for any length of time is when I took Jacob out the other morning. Am I right?"

"When are you ever wrong?" Scott replied with a grin. "I knew I had to come up with a way of passing the time between Jacob's hospital appointments and, well, what could be wrong with spending a couple of days in the company of a good looking girl or two?"

"Ah," John nodded. "That answers that then but how come the girls don't have to work?"

"Today and tomorrow are Jayne's rest days this week," Scott explained. "It's why I stalled you for a day before coming here. I'm not sure about Susan, I suppose she's either rearranged her week or booked the days off as holiday but she's definitely coming with us again tomorrow."

"That's good," John replied. "They compliment each other well and they're funny when they really get going. It makes me feel a bit sorry for Tin-Tin, stuck on the island away from her friends."

Scott shrugged. "She does alright," he said. "She's more than capable of flying off to visit with her girlfriends if she wanted to. The fact that she chooses not to makes me think that she's happier where she is."

The intercom crackled to life and the passengers aboard the catamaran were informed that their arrival back at the dock was imminent. Scott stood up and held out a hand for John to pull himself up. The brothers wandered back to where Scott had left the girls and John just had time to strap Jacob into the stroller before the boat came to a halt.

~#~

As soon as they were back on dry land, Scott began to hint that he was getting hungry. He suggested that the girls take them to somewhere they could eat the picnic and pretty soon the four friends found themselves in a pretty, grassed area surrounded by tall trees.

"Nice," Scott commented as he flopped down on the blanket that he'd just helped Susan lay out on the floor. "Peaceful too. Johnny leave him be and come and sit down. He'll let you know soon enough when he wakes up."

John turned the stroller in such a way that he'd be able to see Jacob's face from the blanket and then slunk over and sat beside his brother. Scott held out a sandwich and grinned when John took a bite without even looking to see what was in it. He looked across and nodded at Jayne who had been watching them with a thoughtful expression on her face. The nurse nodded a silent reply and then smiled before turning her concentration back to dishing out the food.

It seemed that the excitement of the morning had tired Jacob out and the little boy stayed asleep until Scott, John, Jayne and Susan had almost finished their meal. They had saved a little bit of everything for Jacob to try and a lot of laughter was heard around the clearing as Jacob played up to his captive audience while eating his meal.

Despite making his usual mess, Jacob ate well and, with Jayne's help, drank a little bit of fruit juice from John's beaker. Scott smiled as he thought back on the times when he'd had to help both Gordon and Alan with their drinks, for some reason their 'sippy cups' were never available when you needed them and seemed to spend most of their time either in the car or in either Alan or Gordon's beds.

~#~

The afternoon passed quickly and soon it was time to go back to the hotel. Scott arranged for the girls to meet them in the hotel foyer the next morning and told them that he would be buying lunch so they didn't need to worry about making a picnic two days running.

Jacob had a good dinner and a long bath before John put him to bed. The brothers stayed up and talked for a while until they were sure that Jacob was properly settled and then both retired to their separate rooms for an early night.

~#~

The next morning didn't start well. Jacob gagged on a piece of bread that wasn't quite ready to go down and then brought back everything he'd eaten and drunk since getting out of bed. John gingerly lifted him out of the high chair and carried him through into the bathroom where he sat him in the bath and stripped him. Scott, hearing the commotion, went to help and by the time Jayne and Susan arrived Jacob was well on his way through his second bath in less than twenty four hours.

Scott went down to collect the girls from the foyer when the desk clerk called to let him know they were there. He explained what had happened and then sat with them in the restaurant to give John some more time to get Jacob dried, dressed and then, if possible, fed.

In the end John resorted to sitting a fully clothed Jacob in his cot with a plate of raisins and a couple of pieces of chopped-up hard boiled egg from his long-abandoned breakfast. Jacob seemed content to munch on this odd combination of foods and it gave John the chance to change his top and make himself presentable for the day ahead.

Eventually both Jacob and John were ready to face the world. John loaded Jacob's baby bag with bottles of milk and then lifted the little boy from his cot and strapped him into the stroller before setting off to find his brother and their friends.

The desk clerk noticed John as soon as he walked into the foyer. "Your brother is in the restaurant, sir," he called. "He's in the far corner with the young ladies who called for you earlier."

John nodded his thanks and then wandered through into the restaurant where he was immediately spotted by Scott. He pushed Jacob up to the table and sat down while he waited for the others to finish their drinks.

The rest of the morning was spent at the Bonorong Wildlife Park. Sarah had never been to the park before and Jayne admitted to not having been there since she'd visited on a school trip. Jacob had a whale of a time and Scott took lots of pictures of John and the little boy with the various animals around the park including the much celebrated Tasmanian Devil which had only recently been brought back from the brink of extinction.

Scott treated everyone to dinner once they'd finished at the wildlife park. Due to his shaky start that morning Jacob was ravenous and ate virtually everything that was put in front of him. Everyone had a thoroughly good time and laughed a lot while they tucked into their meals.

~#~

The friends took a short walk while they let their dinner go down and then signed up for a coach tour that would take them up to and then around the historic town of Richmond.

The coach dropped them off in Richmond and the tour continued on foot. Scott, John and the girls were interested in what the town had to offer and studied the map and leaflets they'd been given while their guide ran through a brief history of the town. Jacob seemed content to watch the world going by from his stroller and chewed happily on his bear while the tour guide's words wafted past him.

He stayed happy through a lot of the tour until it came to visiting the gaol. Something about the stone building upset the little boy and he became more and more agitated until John abandoned the tour and took him back outside. Scott tried to follow but John, knowing that the history behind the gaol would interest Scott, insisted that both his brother and the girls should finish looking around.

John had taken Jacob out of the stroller just as soon as he'd started wailing and one-handedly pushed it outside with him when he left the tour. Being completely pointless while it was empty, John dumped it at his earliest opportunity and then laid the almost inconsolable Jacob against his chest and set off away from the building that had apparently upset him so badly.

Scott, Jayne and Sarah found the stroller abandoned beside the exit door when they left the gaol and there were several long, worry-filled minutes until Scott finally worked out where John, and by default, Jacob had gone.

Scott knew that if John had been at home he would have headed for the beach. Since the beach wasn't available, Scott guessed that his brother would simply head for the nearest stretch of water where he could walk and work on calming Jacob down. He pulled the tour guide to one side and explained the situation. The guide nodded sympathetically and jotted rough times against each point of interest on Scott's map so that he could catch up and rejoin the tour once he had caught up with John.

Scott thanked the guide and set off in the direction of the river. It was almost directly behind the gaol and Scott and the girls were soon walking across the field to the footpath that ran alongside the water.

They spotted John almost as soon as they set foot on the path although it was obvious that he hadn't seen them because he didn't react. The sun, which was behind Scott and the girls as they neared John, was catching on his hair and, as well as blinding him to their approach, was giving him an almost ethereal glow.

As he got nearer, Scott could see that John had Jacob cradled sideways against his stomach in a loose but comfortable embrace. From the relaxed way he was standing it was clear that John was completely at ease and the fact that Jacob was motionless in his arms led Scott to believe that the little boy was fast asleep.

Scott whistled quietly as he approached his brother so as not to startle him by suddenly appearing out of the sun's glare. John turned and squinted towards them when almost immediately. "Scotty?" he called. "Tell me that's you."

Scott walked straight past John and then reached across and pulled John's sunglasses out of his pocket before sliding them onto his nose. "Of course it's me," he whispered. "Were you expecting someone else?"

John wriggled his nose until the sunglasses sat in a more comfortable position. "Not really," he replied. "I just couldn't see you."

Scott shrugged and looked down to find that Jacob's face was being shaded by the light sheet that was wrapped around him. He carefully moved the sheet aside and took in the boys peaceful features as well as the dried tear stains on his cheeks. "He wore himself out crying?" he guessed.

John nodded. "He sure didn't like it in there," he replied with a snort. "It took ages to calm him down and yes, I think he pretty much only stopped because he physically couldn't keep it up."

"The guide told us it's happened before," Jayne murmured. "He reckons that some children pick up on the history of the place in a…in a…" She stopped and shrugged.

"…in a supernatural way," Scott finished. "Apparently the place is haunted and some children can get…um…freaked out by it."

John frowned. "Well he certainly got freaked out by something," he replied quietly. "I don't know whether it was a ghost or not but it was…weird." John shuddered and then turned his face up towards the sun and sighed. "Definitely weird."

After a couple of minutes John looked over at Scott. "What's happening about the tour?" he asked. "Do we know what time we have to get back to the coach?"

Scott looked at his watch and then consulted the map which the tour guide had written on. "If we hurry we can catch up with the tour about there," he pointed to the map. "…otherwise we can forget about the 'guided' bit and have a look around on our own. What does everyone reckon?"

They decided against rejoining the tour and wandered quietly around Richmond until it was almost time to leave. They strolled back to the small café where the coach was due to pick them up and sat outside with drinks which Jayne insisted on buying for them all.

The coach turned up nearly ten minutes later and the tour guide and his entourage appeared about five minutes after that. The guide directed his other visitors to board the coach and then made his way over to where Scott, John and the girls were sitting.

"You made it back," he commented. "That's good. I was a little worried when you didn't rejoin the tour but guessed that you might have decided to go it alone." He squatted down in front of the stroller and grasped Jacob's tiny uncasted hand with the thumb and forefinger of his right hand. "I'm sorry if my tour upset you, young man but I'm glad to see that you're alright now and that you're leaving here with the same cheery smile on your face that you arrived with." He stood back up and looked over towards the coach. "Well, my friends, it looks like everyone else has finished boarding. If you could please join them then we can get on our way."

~#~

The trip back to Hobart passed without event and all too soon it was time for the friends to part company for the evening. Scott drove them back to the hotel and pulled up next to Jayne's car which had been left in the secure parking lot beneath the building.

Everyone climbed out and proceeded to say their goodbyes. Susan knew that she wouldn't be seeing the boys again before they flew home so she gave Scott and John a quick hug before cuddling Jacob tightly and wishing him well. Jayne promised to meet them all at the hospital on the morning of Jacob's appointment and then both girls climbed into Jayne's car and then drove away.


	70. Chapter 70

~#~ (Chapter 70)

As well as taking several long walks, Scott and John spent the three remaining days before Jacob's appointment sorting out what they would and wouldn't be taking back to the island with them. Scott took Rosie's boxes and packed them into the plane while John organised Jacob's clothing into neat piles of 'taking' and 'not taking'.

Anything that was definitely remaining behind in Tasmania was eventually stacked against one wall of Scott's room. Everything else was kept in John's room ready to be either packed into the plane or moved into Scott's room on the morning they were due to leave.

~#~

John's nerves about Jacob's appointment caught up with him on the evening before they were due to leave. Jacob picked up on the tension radiating out of his father and was fractious for most of the evening until John gave him a bath and then handed him to Scott to put him to bed.

Once the little boy was asleep Scott slipped back through the bathroom into his own room where John was waiting for him. "You don't need to worry, Johnny," he murmured as he dropped heavily onto the bed beside his brother. "Everything's going to go fine at the hospital and we're pretty well organised here so by this time tomorrow we should be well on our way home."

"God, I hope so," John nodded and then let out a chuckle as his hair flopped in front of his eyes. "If nothing else, I need to get home so Tin-Tin can sort this out. She was supposed to trim it before I went back up to Five but it never got done and...well, that all seems so long ago now."

"I bet it does," Scott replied. "It's been an interesting few weeks but it's almost over now. The short, and not particularly sweet, Tasmanian segment of your life is drawing to a close and your 'life as Jacob's daddy' is about to begin in earnest."

John smiled at this. "As is your life as big, bad Uncle Scott," he murmured. "Starting with getting us all back home in one piece."

"I can do that," Scott replied with a grin. "Although it's gonna be interesting to see what Titch makes of the plane. We could be in for a fun journey if he doesn't like it."

John grinned. "Well he's comfortable in his seat and he doesn't mind the car so, fingers crossed, he'll be alright. He'd better be, anyway, because you can't sensibly live where we do without using a plane."

Scott nodded. "Well, we'll find out tomorrow. Now, we've packed pretty much everything and we're sat in a room full of stuff we either don't want or don't need. The baby's asleep in the other room so, Johnny, I don't think we have any other option for entertainment tonight apart from TV. Do you fancy a film?"

Scott and John picked two films and then, on the spur of the moment, ordered room service and a bottle of wine.

~#~

The brothers ate far more than was necessary during the evening and were both mellow and drowsy by the time the second film finished. John's frayed nerves had been calmed by the wine, food and good company and he was relaxed enough that he fell asleep almost as soon as his head made contact with his pillow.

Scott stayed up just long enough to check that John was settled and then he too fell into bed and followed his brother into the arms of Morpheus.

~#~

The next morning dawned bright and sunny. Scott, John and Jacob ate breakfast in John's room and then Scott folded the travel cot away and took it through to his room while John got Jacob dressed. Once the little boy was presentable John strapped him into the stroller with a couple of toys and then helped Scott with the last of the bits and pieces that either needed packing or taking through into the other room.

By the time they were done, Scott's room looked like a rummage sale and John's room looked like an airport baggage claim area. Jacob sat in his stroller in the middle of the room surrounded by cases and bags and John stopped and laughed as he stopped to survey the organised-chaos.

"You know something, Scott," he called. "We're going to look _really_ stupid if we don't end up going home today. Everything we need if we have to stay here tonight is either packed or put away."

Scott wandered through from the bathroom and stood beside John. "It's a risk we had to take if we wanted any chance of getting home before midnight," he pointed out. "Now come on, let's see how much of this we can get in the car. We've still got time if we need to make two trips."

They got everything in the car purely by leaving John and Jacob behind. Scott left the pair in the restaurant and drove to the airport where he loaded everything into the plane and then returned to the hotel.

John was speaking to the hotel manager when Scott walked back through the main doors. He was standing by the reception desk and had his arms around Jacob who was sitting on the desktop in front of him. The receptionist was clearly trying to amuse Jacob while John spoke to the manager and Scott shook his head as the thin, whippet-like young man was struck on the forehead by a low-flying pen that had been hurled across the desk.

Scott walked up and reached around John to pluck Jacob from his arms. John jumped and turned slightly before realising that it was his brother who had snuck up behind him. "I won't be a moment," he said quietly. "I'm just making final arrangements."

Scott nodded and whispered a non-too-quiet countdown in Jacob's ear before lifting him vertically off the desk, complete with rocket sounds. He heard John chuckling behind him and then brought the little boy in for a landing before snuggling him tightly into his arms.

~#~

"All done." John turned around only to find that neither Scott nor Jacob were anywhere to be seen. "Ookay, that's…helpful."

The receptionist, who was speaking on the phone tapped him on the shoulder and pointed towards the restaurant. John rolled his eyes and pushed the empty stroller through the door and into the restaurant where he found Scott. Surprisingly the eldest Tracy boy wasn't either eating or drinking as John had guessed he might be, instead he was standing by the window, with Jacob held in front of him, people watching.

Scott had noticed John come into the restaurant and watched his approach in the reflection of the window. "All sorted?" he asked as John came up behind him. "Are they alright about everything?"

John nodded. "Seem to be," he replied. "We're checked out, to a point. Assuming we don't come back this afternoon we'll be checked out of my room completely tomorrow morning. Your room will stay 'ours' until the hospital, or whoever, take everything out of it. The manager's agreeable to that and said that they'll just lock the door between the bathroom and your room until they can rent out both rooms together again."

"Sounds like a plan," Scott agreed. "Once the doctor has given this one," Scott jiggled Jacob up and down and made the little boy giggle. "…his seal of approval we can let the hospital know that the stuff is theirs whenever they want it although it'll need moving sooner rather than later so as not to inconvenience this place too much."

John nodded again. "True," he replied and then looked at his watch. "We need to get moving. If we miss the appointment then we're never going to end up getting home tonight."


	71. Chapter 71

~#~ (Chapter 71)

To Scott's relief, everything went smoothly at the hospital. Despite everyone's assurances the week before he had still been secretly worried that something might stop them leaving Tasmania that afternoon and he had been concerned about John's ability to cope with another setback.

Jacob behaved for his X-ray and then sat on John's knee and smiled up at him while the doctor carefully cut the fibreglass covering off his arm. The doctor set the cast to one side and gently manipulated the little boy's tiny arm to confirm that everything was working properly. He told John that he was happy with how the bones had healed but explained that Jacob would need some gentle exercises done on his arm to ensure that he would have a full range motion and flexibility in the future. As long as this was kept up for the next couple of weeks then, the doctor explained, Jacob would suffer no lasting effects from the broken bones. He signed the appropriate release papers, handed them to Scott and then wished the Tracys well before leaving the room.

John gathered Jacob into his arms and cuddled him closely, unimpeded for the first time by anything thicker than a few layers of cotton. Scott watched for a few seconds and then stepped forwards and wrapped his arms around the pair of them. "We're going home, Johnny," he whispered. "We're going home."

John was too overcome with emotion to speak and just nodded against his brother's shoulder.

The three of them remained like that for several minutes until a gentle knock at the door heralded the arrival of a nurse.

"Oh, I'm sorry, sirs," she said quietly. "I was under the impression that the room was empty, I was sent to get it ready for the next appointment. Is there a problem?"

John untangled himself from Scott and then leant sideways so he could see the nurse. "No, everything's fine," he replied. "Just fine. We've been told we can finally go home and we were just taking a moment before we actually did that. We'll be out of your way in a minute."

"No rush, sirs," the nurse replied kindly. "Are you taking that with you?" She pointed at the little blue cast that sat on the bed beside John. "A lot of parents like to take their child's cast as a memento or a keepsake to show off in the future."

"Like a 'look how small you were' kind of thing," Scott said quietly. "I think that's a great idea. Johnny?"

John looked from Jacob to Scott and then back to Jacob again. "Definitely," he replied with a smile. "Then when he's as big as you we can marvel at the fact he was ever this little."

The nurse looked Scott up and down and giggled. "That's it exactly," she agreed. "I'll find something to put it in and then I'll be back. OK?"

John nodded and then handed Jacob to Scott so he could slide himself off the examination table. Once he was back on his feet he took the baby back and suggested that Scott might want to find Jayne so they could say their goodbyes.

Scott strode away and returned just a couple of minutes later saying that Jayne would meet them in the cafeteria for lunch. The nurse returned a couple of minutes after Scott with Jacob's cast in a small, cardboard box which she handed to Scott because John's hands were still full of Jacob. She then told them she would give them a few minutes before coming back to sort out the room.

~#~

The Tracys had a pleasant lunch with Jayne and then walked with her back to the quiet parking lot where John and Jayne could say their tearful goodbyes without too many people around to see them. Jayne promised to speak to someone about getting the furniture and other items moved out of the hotel so they could start distributing it to people who needed it most.

The drive to the airport turned out to be very quiet. Jacob fell asleep almost as soon as Scott pulled away from the hospital and John spent the first half of the journey staring out of the window, deep in thought. He sat up and started taking notice of the world around him again when the airport came into view and by the time they drove into the hangar he was virtually bouncing with anticipation.

"Calm down, Johnny," Scott said with a chuckle. "I know you've been waiting for this but we've still got a long flight ahead of us and to be honest, it's wearing me out just looking at you."

"Me?" John snorted. "I'm just pleased to be going home, that's all. It's been a long time in coming and now we're here I just want to get gone. I've met some lovely people in the past few weeks but they can't make up for the sadness that I've felt while I've been here and as pleasant as some of the parts of my stay have been, I can't say I ever want to come back."

Scott reached over and gently squeezed John's shoulder. "I can't see any reason why you would have to," he said quietly. "…because, quite frankly, there's nothing and no-one tying either you or Jacob to this place. Now, how about you get Titch out of that seat so I can get it into the plane."

John unclipped Jacob's straps and lifted him out of the car seat without the little boy completely waking up. Jacob flopped sleepily against his chest so John tucked him under his chin and stood, rocking gently back and forth, on the tarmac beside the plane. Scott freed the car seat from its moorings and smiled as he carried it past John and clambered into the aircraft.

Just a few minutes later he returned and gave John a thumbs up sign before getting the last couple of bags from the car and sitting them at the bottom of the steps up to the plane. "All done," he announced as he rested a hand on Jacob's back and bent down to smile at his peacefully sleeping features. "You get him settled in and I'll get rid of the car. Don't worry about these bits, I'll load them when I come back."

John nodded and one-handedly climbed up into the plane with Scott's hand firmly against the small of his back to make sure he got in safely. Scott then left him with Jacob and returned the car to the rental agency before jogging back to grab the bags from the bottom of the steps.

He bounded up into the plane and secured the bags inside. Jacob, who had woken up when John tried to transfer him back into his car seat, cooed as Scott opened and closed the various cupboard compartments around the interior of the plane. Scott finished securing everything and squatted on the floor in front of him where he was perched on John's knee. "Well you're wide awake now, aren't you?" he asked with a grin as he reached out and tickled the little boy under the chin with the tip of one finger. "I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not when we're due for taking off any minute."

John chuckled as Jacob squealed loudly at his uncle. "Sorry," he replied. "I tried not to wake him but it didn't work out. At least if he's awake he can have a bottle while we take off so he shouldn't have too many problems with the change of cabin pressure."

Scott nodded. "That's true," he agreed. "…and it's not like he was going to sleep the whole way back anyway. Now, what do you say we get out of here? The paperwork's all filed and we have a take off slot booked in roughly twenty minutes. You need to get this one," he took the finger that had been tickling Jacob and poked the little boy gently on his chest. "…strapped in, then we can get moving. Unless you want me to strap him in while you get the plane fired up?"

John shook his head and leant over to gently drop Jacob into his seat. "I'll strap, you fly," he replied. "Although I'll give you a break once we're on our way."

Scott nodded and wandered through into the cockpit. Once the plane was ready to go he checked with John that everything was secure and upon receiving confirmation that it was he taxied the aircraft out of the hangar and across to the end of the appropriate runway. They had to wait for a couple of minutes for final clearance but very soon they were high above the Tasman Sea and on their way home.


	72. Chapter 72

~#~ (Chapter 72)

Scott flew most of the way back although John took over for a while midflight so that his brother could have a break. Jacob stayed cheerful for most of the journey and seemed contented to be perched on John's knee while his father read to him or played with some of his toys. Scott tried holding him up to the window while John was flying but the ocean, far below, failed to capture the little boy's attention so Scott reverted back to John's idea of sitting Jacob on his knee and playing with him.

Jacob fell asleep about twenty minutes before they were due to arrive home. John strapped him into the car seat and wrapped a thin blanket loosely around him to keep him cosy before moving to sit with Scott in the cockpit. Being nearly midnight, it was almost completely dark and John looked out of the co-pilot's window, trying to catch a glimpse of the brightly illuminated Tracy Island as it come into view.

Scott grinned as he watched John out of the corner of his eye. "Don't worry, Johnny, you won't miss it," he said quietly.

John looked across at him. "What?"

Scott rolled his eyes. "I mean that I have a feeling the welcoming committee will be out in force when we get back and I think you'll find that everything…and I mean _everything_, will be switched on to guide us in."

John shook his head and went back to staring out of his window at the blackness below them.

~#~

After a short while he squinted against the window as a bright white beam of light appeared in the distance. "You're right, as usual," he murmured. "Although why we'd possibly need Three's landing laser to guide us in, I'll never know."

Scott snorted. "I'd guess that's purely for your benefit," he replied. "There's no way you could have seen the island from this distance without it. I'm guessing there's no traffic anywhere nearby or Dad wouldn't have risked lighting the place up like that, we must be the only thing flying around here tonight. You want to call in before you go and sit with the little'un?"

John nodded and sat the headset carefully down over his hair. "Tracy Island from Tracy flight 667, are you receiving?"

"Tracy Island receiving you loud and clear." Jeff's cheerful-sounding reply was transmitted into both John and Scott's headsets. "We've been watching your approach on the radar, boys; you've made good time. The welcome mat's already out and there's a few people here waiting for you."

"I'll bet there is," Scott said quietly as he covered his microphone up so only John could hear him. "I'll wager that _everyone's_ out of bed and waiting for us."

John sniggered and covered his own microphone up. "I'm afraid I won't be betting against you on that one," he replied quietly. "…because I happen to agree with you." He uncovered his microphone and spoke into it once again. "Dad, we'll be coming down just as soon as I've got myself out of the cockpit. I take it there's nothing we need to know before we land?"

"No son, everything's fine down here," Jeff replied and both boys could hear the contentment in his words. "Scott, I assume you're listening, the hangar's open just come straight inside."

Scott took his hand off his microphone. "Will do, Father. We'll see you in a few." He reached up and pressed a series of buttons on one of the control panels. "You might want to get a shift, Johnny, if you don't want Titch to wake up alone when the pressure changes. Reducing speed, now."

John pulled the headset off and scrambled out of his seat and into the back of the plane. Jacob was still blissfully unaware of the goings on around him so John double-checked his straps and then strapped himself into the seat beside his son. "All ready back here, Scott," he called. Scott didn't reply but almost immediately there was a whine as he adjusted the planes flaps so they could start the final part of their journey home.

~#~

Scott, as usual, made a near perfect landing and then taxied his sleek, black jet into the waiting hangar. He filled in the flight log and then sat and listened to John pottering around in the back of the plane while the aircraft was powering down.

Through the front window of the jet, Scott could see his family waiting for them. He climbed out of his seat and walked down the plane to where John was packing Jacob's things back into their bags. Despite the fact that John had been looking forward to coming home, Scott realised his brother was also nervous about rejoining their family. He patted John on the shoulder and Jacob on the head and then moved over so he could open the aircraft door.

Scott stuck his head out of the door and waved across to where Jeff and the others were waiting. He looked around the hangar for a moment and then grimaced at the glare of the lights before disappeared back inside the plane.

He reappeared about a minute later with a sheet-covered bundle cuddled against his left shoulder. The sheet hung loosely down Scott's back and almost reached his stomach at the front, he gently patted it before walking carefully down the steps and over to where his family was waiting.

Scott had noticed from the plane that Alan was wriggling but he hadn't managed to work out why until he got nearer. He grinned as he approached the others and saw that Virgil had hold of a handful of his youngest brother's clothing, right between the shoulder blades where Alan couldn't dislodge his grip. Scott quickly came to the conclusion that the impulsive young Tracy was being restrained until Jacob was safely out of the way because Virgil let Alan go the moment that Scott walked past him. Alan sped off across the hangar with Gordon close behind him and Scott briefly turned to watch as his two youngest brothers threw themselves at John.

John, surprisingly, didn't shy away from the contact and threw his arms around both Alan and Gordon. Scott smiled and turned away, nodding to Jeff that he was taking Jacob up to the house. He gave his grandmother a peck on the cheek as he passed her. "Hi, Grandma," he whispered. "It looks like the youngsters might have John tied up for a while. How about you come with me and I'll introduce you to your great grandson?"

"Oh." Ruth's face softened as the cloth bundle in Scott's arms shifted slightly. "Oh, I'd love that, Scott, dear. Let's head to the lounge, Tin-Tin and her family are getting drinks and a snack ready in there."

Ruth linked her arm with Scott's and the pair headed up to the house. Jeff watched them go and was aware of John doing the same from where Alan and Gordon had trapped him on the aircraft steps. The Tracy patriarch grinned and shook his head at the slightly flustered look that started to form on John's face as he failed to extricate himself from his youngest siblings. "Virgil," he said quietly. "I think our space monitor may be in need of rescue. What do you think?"

Virgil tore his eyes away from where he'd been watching Scott and turned his gaze towards John and smirked. "I think you might be right. Can you handle Gordy if I take Alan?"

"Divide and conquer." Jeff nodded appreciatively. "Not a problem."

~#~

John, Jeff, Virgil, Alan and Gordon eventually made it to the lounge only to find themselves greeted by a childless Scott sitting on one of the sofas with a cup of coffee.

John looked around the room which was devoid of any other life and turned to his brother. "Where is he?" he asked. "You were supposed to be looking after him."

Scott put his coffee on the floor and held his hands up in mock surrender. "Don't blame me," he said quietly. "I might have survived if it had just been Grandma but I didn't stand a chance up against all three of them. If you want to know where he is just follow the gooey girly noises."

Jeff heard John heading off towards the kitchen and chuckled when he heard Gordon mumbling behind him. "Big bad Scott, beaten by a bunch of girls." Unfortunately for Gordon he'd forgotten just how good Scott's hearing was.

Scott waved his coffee in Gordon's direction. "I'd like to have seen you do better," he replied. "I'm tired, have been up," he stopped and squinted as he held his hand up so he could look at his watch. "…ooh, way too many hours and I've just flown most of the way from Tasmania pretty much in one go. Jacob's safe enough with the girls, now let me drink my coffee in peace." 

"Alright, that's enough," Jeff said before Gordon could retaliate. "Gordon, Scott's just got back. He doesn't need that sort of abuse from you, especially not while he's trying to enjoy his drink. Now, how about you go and see how…Ah, Kyrano. Exceptional timing as ever."

Kyrano bustled around and set several platefuls of finger foods down on the glass-topped coffee table. "I fear the food may be a little delayed," he said quietly. "Due to my wife and daughter being wholly distracted by the arrival of Master Jacob."

Jeff smiled and grasped Kyrano's arm. "Don't worry about that, my old friend. Scott's already explained that Jacob's causing a stir among the female members of the household. Gordon was just coming to give you a hand. _Weren't_ you, Gordon?"

"Um," Gordon shrugged. "I guess so. What do you need me to do?"

Kyrano smiled and beckoned towards the kitchen. "Come with me, Master Gordon, if you please."

The aquanaut followed Kyrano through into the kitchen and grinned when he saw that John was sitting on one of the worktops overseeing Ruth, Tin-Tin and Onaha as they cooed over Jacob. Jacob, for his part, was cushioned against Ruth's chest and was quietly watching the goings on around him as he sucked on the middle fingers of his right hand.

Gordon shook his head and picked up the pile of dishes that Kyrano pointed out to him. He caught John's eye as he turned to leave the room and grinned again when John rolled his eyes and gave him a helpless shrug.

~#~

Gordon made his way back into the lounge and put the plates onto the table near to the food. He then sidled up to Jeff and leant against him. "I think John might be about to have problems with Grandma," he said quietly. "She's attached herself to the baby and doesn't seem inclined to let him go again. I don't think John's willing to let him out of sight so he's not going to get to eat unless you get Grandma to come out here."

Jeff wrapped an arm around Gordon and squeezed him gently. "Give her a couple of minutes," he replied. "She's been waiting for weeks to get her hands on that little boy. If they're not out in a while, or if it looks like John's starting to get stressed, then I'll intervene."

Gordon nodded and stayed wrapped in Jeff's arms for a short while until he realised that he was supposed to be helping Kyrano in the kitchen. He headed into the other room and met Kyrano coming in the opposite direction with the last bits of the meal. "I thank you, Master Gordon, however I find that I no longer need your assistance. Your brother, I feel, may need it instead. If I may suggest you continue through into the kitchen…"

Kyrano, it seemed, had also noticed John's predicament where Ruth Tracy was concerned and Gordon nodded his understanding. He slipped quietly into the kitchen and immediately noticed that both Onaha and Tin-Tin had disappeared. John had climbed off the worktop and was standing in front of Ruth who was chattering happily to Jacob. The elder of the blonde Tracy boys was trying, without success, to persuade his grandmother to go into the lounge and Gordon could see the tension building in his brother's features, despite the fact that Ruth seemed completely oblivious to it.

John gave Gordon a pleading look as he headed across the room. The aquanaut nodded slightly and smiled when John relaxed as he realised that help was at hand.

Gordon stopped beside Ruth and put on his best puppy-dog eyes before turning to her. "Grandma," he said quietly. "Grandma, I haven't met Jacob yet but I'm worried that I'm going to hurt him. Would you show me how to hold him properly?"

The question was asked in such a way that both Ruth and John were immediately thrown back to the memory of a five year old Gordon trying to explain that he really hadn't _meant_ to hurt his little brother. He'd just been trying to teach Alan the 'right way to jump down stairs' and it hadn't been Gordon's fault that his instructions hadn't been followed his properly.

Ruth stood on tiptoe and placed a kiss on Gordon's cheek. "Of course I can, dear. Now, come here so I can get to you properly."

After making sure that Jacob was secure in the crook of her right arm, Ruth pulled Gordon around until she was happy that his arms were in the correct positions. She then carefully lifted Jacob up into his arms and laid the little boy across his chest.

"Thanks Grandma," the aquanaut murmured and he looked down at Jacob who was smiling up at him. "Hey, he's smiling. Look, John, he's smiling."

John stepped alongside his brother and then pulled Ruth in for a hug. "That he is," he agreed quietly. "Gordon, would you like to do the honours and carry him through to the lounge? Alan and Virgil haven't met him yet and I'm betting Dad wouldn't mind a cuddle with him either."

Gordon smiled softly. "I think I can do that," he replied and then looked concerned. "You're coming too. Aren't you?"

John nodded. "Yeah, don't worry, I won't be leaving you alone with him…or at least, not yet. You go ahead with Jacob, I'll follow you with someone else."

Gordon didn't understand John's comment and frowned for a moment until he saw John motioning towards Ruth with his eyes. "Ah. I see. I'll be going then," he said with a grin. "Come on Jakey, we need to move before Grandma starts making a fuss."

"Why would I do that?" Ruth looked momentarily confused until John pulled her up and into his arms. "No! Johnny! You put me down, young man. This _instant_!"

"No chance, Grandma," John said with a grin. "I've been trying to get you out of the kitchen for the past five minutes but you wouldn't go. Now I'm going to follow my son through into the lounge and you're coming with me, whether you like it or not."

Ruth let out a giggle. "Well, I really can't say no when you put it like that," she replied and wrapped her arms around John's neck before snuggling against him. "This reminds me of the early years that I spent with your grandfather. He'd come in from a hard day's work on the farm and he'd pick me up and carry me around for no apparent reason. He was a good man, my Grant was, Johnny, a very good man."

John cuddled Ruth close. "That he was," he agreed. "That he was. So, who do you think will have stolen Jacob off Gordon? Dad or Scott?"

"I don't even need to think about that one, dear," Ruth replied with a smile. "Your father will have him."

John grinned. "Let's go and find out."


	73. Chapter 73

~#~ (Chapter 73)

John carried Ruth into the lounge and deposited her gently into her chair before giving her a tight hug and a kiss. "Love you, Grandma," he whispered and then stood up to full height and turned around to find Gordon standing behind him with a tired-looking Jacob resting against his shoulder.

"Hi," Gordon murmured. "Dad wanted him but I thought you might want him back for a bit. Mind you, he's gone all boneless so I'm not sure he's going to stay awake much longer anyway."

John slipping his hands gently between Gordon's chest and Jacob's body and lifted the little boy out of his brother's arms. He tucked Jacob against his neck and kissed him gently when Jacob snuffled sleepily against him. "I think you're right, Gordy, he'll be asleep soon. He's only awake now because he woke up when Scott started bringing the plane down, by all rights he should have been about ready to go down for the night rather than just having a nap. If he doesn't go down soon then he's going to be awfully grouchy tomorrow. I need…I don't…um…Dad, where's the bag? Jacob's bag, that I had on the plane?"

Jeff looked around and found the bag behind one of the sofas. He handed it to John and nodded knowingly. "I think someone's about ready for bed," he murmured. "If you take him to your room you'll find it's all set up ready. Do you want someone to come with you."

John hesitated for a moment and then shook his head. "No. I'll be fine but I'd be grateful if someone could sort a bottle out for when I come back."

~#~

John walked slowly down the corridor to the bedrooms and stopped outside his door. "What are we going to find in here, eh?" Jacob rubbed his head tiredly against John's shoulder and let out a quiet cry which made John smile. "I know, I know, you're tired and you want to go to bed but that's not altogether sociable. You haven't had your drink yet either, so how about we get you changed and then you can have your bottle and go to sleep in the lounge before going to bed?"

Jacob lifted his head up, whimpered quietly and then dropped his head back against John's collar bone with a thud. John chuckled. "Glad you agree," he said quietly. "…and no, standing outside the door's not going to get us anywhere, is it?"

John swiped his hand across the touchpad and the door to his room swished open. He stepped through into his sitting room area and stopped dead. His furniture had been thoughtfully rearranged around the additional items that had been added to the room and as he looked John realised that Alan obviously knew him far better than he ever would have guessed.

A pine changing station sat in one corner of the room with a cream-coloured changing mat on top of it and from where he stood, John could see that the base of the table was neatly stocked with essential baby items. Beside the changing table was the bedroom door, which was closed and next to the door sat John's comfortable cream-coloured sofa. On the far side of the sofa, tucked just beneath the arm to keep it out of the way, was a new bouncy chair that had been bought for Jacob. The cream of the chair had a slightly more beige tinge to it than the true cream of the sofa but this was off-set by the large brown bear that adorned the back where Jacob would be sitting.

On the other side of the room, by the window, was John's pride and joy, his telescope. This was the thing that had most worried the sensitive man about letting his brothers rearrange his living space; even though, in his heart, he had known that neither Alan, Gordon nor Virgil would let anything happen to it. As he looked, John smiled broadly when he realised that his brothers had done the complete opposite and had protected the scope against all eventualities. Despite the fact that Jacob couldn't move on his own yet, someone, John presumed this had been Virgil, had created a completely childproof area around the base of the telescope. While being large enough for John to move around the scope unimpeded, the area was small enough that it didn't encroach too far into the room. The barrier around the outside had been fashioned in pine that had been stained to exactly match the changing station and John chuckled when he noticed that several small teddy bears had been hung from the top rail of what was equivalently a play-pen that his brothers had built for him.

John rubbed Jacob's back when the little boy started to grumble. "Alright," he whispered. "I know, I promised to let you go to sleep soon. Let's see if there's a sleep-suit over there that we can put you in, otherwise we'll have to get one out of the bag."

John lay Jacob carefully down on the changing mat and held him there with one hand while he rummaged through the cupboard with the other. Eventually he had everything he needed and stood up to find his son smiling up at the ceiling. "That's a happy little face," he said with a grin and he turned his head to see what had captivated Jacob's attention.

On the ceiling was a masterpiece that was one hundred percent Virgil. The moon, with a big, happy face, grinned down from the ceiling directly above Jacob surrounded by small, yellow and equally smiley stars. As John watched he realised that the stars were twinkling slightly and it took him almost a full minute to track the source of the twinkles down to a spot on the wall which had a cluster of tiny lasers shooting out of it at random intervals. He eventually found another spot, level with Jacob's head that he figured was the control for the whole thing. "He's clever, your uncle Virg is. Very clever indeed."

~#~

Once Jacob was completely changed, John wrapped him in a light blanket and carried him back into the lounge. Jeff held a bottle out as John slipped onto the sofa beside Scott and grinned as Jacob immediately made a grab for it.

John rolled his eyes and gently pushed the teat into Jacob's mouth and then grinned when the little boy made a contented noise in his throat as the milk started flowing. "I know," he said quietly. "You had to wait so long for that but you haven't made a fuss."

Scott let out a chuff of laughter and stretched his arm out across the back of the sofa behind his brother. "Not like on the boat," he murmured. "Do you think he knows he's got to be on his best behaviour today or something?"

John snorted. "No," he replied. "I just think he's too tired to do anything else. Meeting all these new people's worn him out." John looked around the room and winked at Virgil in acknowledgement that he hadn't had the chance to meet Jacob yet. "Speaking of new people…where's Alan?"

A rumble of laughter was heard from Jeff. "He and Tin-Tin have gone for a walk," he replied. "I'm not sure he quite knows what to think about everything that's going on. He came back from Penny's in a great mood and seemed to enjoy helping get everything organised in your room furniture-wise but once that was all done he seems to have closed in on himself somewhat." Jeff shrugged. "You know, I don't think I'll ever entirely understand that boy. He's turned out just so different from the rest of you."

Gordon walked back into the room at that point and put a pitcher full of lemonade down on the table. "Different to the rest of us?" he asked. "I take it you're talking about my only younger brother? He's definitely different, alright." He moved over to Jeff and extracted the coffee cup from his hand. Jeff raised an eyebrow at this so Gordon hastily explained himself. "Kyrano suggested that, bearing in mind the time, we might want to lay off the coffee if we want any sleep tonight. Oh, hey John. What do you think of your rooms?"

John grinned. "I haven't seen the bedroom but the sitting room's great and Virgil, the ceiling's already been given the Jacob seal of approval. I didn't spot it when I put him down to change him but I think he was mesmerised by it pretty much straight away. Am I tight in thinking it's movement activated? I found what I assume is a sensor on the wall by the table."

Virgil stepped forward slightly and nodded. "Yes," he replied. "It activates when you put him down on the mat and switches off about thirty seconds after you pick him up again. I thought it might help keep him still because I'll never forget Scott having to catch Alan when he rolled off the changing table that time."

Scott shuddered. "Yeah," he said quietly. "I only just made it as well."

"Oh, I remember your mother telling me about that," Ruth called out from her chair. "She said that little Gordon had distracted her at just the wrong moment and that Scott's lightning-fast reactions had almost certainly saved baby Alan from some serious harm."

Gordon shrugged. "I don't remember that," he admitted quietly. "But I can see now why you thought that the mural was a good idea. Kind of like the mobile above the cot."

"Not been in there remember, so haven't seen it," John replied with a smile. "Although from what Alan was saying when he was in Australia, I'm guessing it's lilac, cream and bears?"

Gordon smiled and then nodded his head. "Did you see what Virgil built around your scope? He's been working his little socks off in there for the past few days. Haven't you?"

Virgil blushed and looked at the floor. "I've been doing other things as well," he replied quietly. "…but I wanted to make sure it was right in there. There was no point in doing half a job on it, now was there?"

Jeff stepped up beside Virgil and hung an arm around his shoulders. "No, there wasn't," he agreed. "…and it looks good for it. The bedroom does too, which you'll see soon enough. Er, John, I think you'll find he's finished." Jeff motioned to Jacob who was fast asleep with the now-empty teat still firmly clamped in his mouth.

John chuckled and prised the teat away from his son before resting the empty bottle onto the sofa beside himself and settling down more comfortably next to Scott. He let out a relaxed groan and then closed his eyes. "It's good to be home."

"Oi. Don't you go to sleep." Scott said, tapping him on the back of the head with the hand that was resting behind him. "You haven't eaten anything yet and you've got a perfectly good, if unexplored, bedroom to sleep in."

John snorted and opened one eye. "Can't move," he said quietly and wafted a hand over Jacob. "…don't want to wake the baby."

It was Scott's turn to snort as he reached out and hooked a foot under the rim of the coffee table before pulling it slowly towards the sofa. He reached forwards and pulled some items onto a plate before handing it to John with a grin. "There you go, sir. No need to move…and no excuse not to eat. We've done well while we've been over there and I'm not going to let it slip now we're home. Eat."

John smiled and let out a mock salute. "Yes, sir." He looked down at the plate and looked worried. "Someone told Kyrano what I said about the chicken wings in the hotel, didn't they? Please tell me he got the whole story including the fact that they weren't as good as his wings."

"He knows what you said," Gordon replied with a nod. "…because after speaking to you I went to find him to ask if he'd make me some. He was adamant that he wouldn't make them for breakfast but he did do some for lunch instead. I think he's probably done them now to make sure you remember, once and for all, which are best…his over the Tasmanian ones."

John nodded and used his teeth to pull a tender piece of meat off one of the wings. He savoured it for a moment and then sighed. "There's no doubt about it, Kyrano's are the best. Scott, you're not eating?"

Scott shook his head. "I've eaten," he explained. "The five of us ate while you were sorting Jacob out. Alan sort of did a snatch and run on his way out to meet Tin-Tin, even though I'm pretty sure she had a hamper with her. If she didn't then he still had enough on his plate for us to be sure he's eaten well."

John nodded and leaned his head back against Scott's arm. "Thanks for bringing us home, Scott," he murmured. "In fact, thanks for getting us out of there and everything else you've done for us over the past few weeks as well."

Scott squeezed his shoulder. "Don't mention it, Johnny," he replied. "I'm just glad that everything went off right this morning. I'm not sure if I could have dreamt up another week of entertainment for us. My idea reserves had just about run dry." Scott shifted himself lower on the base of the sofa and leant his head against the padded back. "You're right, you know. It _is_ good to be home."

Jeff nodded and tightened the arm he had around Virgil before holding his other arm out to Gordon. Gordon didn't need asking twice and immediately slipped under Jeff's arm and wrapped his arms around him. Jeff kissed the top of his head and turned back to smile at Scott, John and Jacob. "Now all we need," he said quietly. "…is for the no-longer-youngest Tracy to grace us with his presence and we'll finally have the whole family together, in one place, for the first time."


	74. Chapter 74

~#~ (Chapter 74)

Jeff's 'whole family get-together' didn't happen until nearly the end of the following day. No-one knew exactly when Alan returned from his outing with Tin-Tin but he eventually wandered out of his room and plonked himself down on one of the sofas in the lounge well after ten o'clock the next morning. Jeff and Scott, who had been quietly discussing some paperwork at Jeff's desk looked up as he sat down.

Scott held his arm out and whistled. "10.27. You do realise that every other person in the house beat you up this morning? Including Virgil."

Alan frowned. "The baby's not up yet," he argued. "I can't see him or hear him so he's obviously still asleep."

Jeff rolled his eyes. "Just because he's not here, doesn't mean he's not up. Jacob and John have been up for hours and they've both had breakfast, which is more than I can say for you, young man."

Alan's frown was bordering on a scowl by now. "Not my fault," he muttered. "They should have come back at a more sensible time then we could've had a decent night's sleep."

"Hey." Scott stepped out from behind the desk and crouched in front of Alan. "That's not fair and you know it. Yes, we could have stayed in Hobart for another few hours and flown out in the middle of the night like Dad did but that would hardly have been practical with Jacob in tow, nor would it have been fair on him. We came back here at the earliest opportunity because A…it was more practical and B…John couldn't have handled much longer away from normality. You seemed happy enough when you were in Australia and from what I've heard you had some fun in Bonga-Bonga so what's changed. I thought you'd be jumping at the chance of having John back, instead you said 'Hi' and then disappeared off with Tin-Tin. You didn't wait to see what he thought of the things you'd bought for him or hang around long enough to have any sort of half way decent conversation with him. He noticed that you weren't here, I'll have you know and he seemed upset that you'd disappeared without him managing to speak to you. Dad was looking forward to getting all of us here together as well, which also never happened because you never came back."

"I came back," Alan objected. "…but everyone apart from Kyrano had gone to bed. I don't really know why he was still up 'cos he just seemed to be pottering around and doing a whole lot of nothing and he disappeared pretty much as soon as I came in." Alan shook his head and finally looked up to meet Scott's now-amused expression.

"Alan," Scott said softly. "You were out in the dark, late at night, with Tin-Tin. You can't honestly tell me that you have no clue why Kyrano was still up."

Alan frowned again. "He doesn't trust me. None of you do. You were all quite happy for me to take Tin-Tin and Onaha to Sydney when there was no-one else to do it but you don't trust me."

Scott slapped the palm of his hand against his forehead and turned to look at Jeff who clambered to his feet and moved to sit beside Alan on the sofa. He cupped Alan's chin in his hand and gently tugged until his son had no other option than looking him in the eye. "Of course we trust you," he said quietly. "We just don't want anything to happen to you…or Tin-Tin for that matter. Kyrano was being a responsible parent to a teenage girl."

Alan pulled his chin out of Jeff's grasp and stared at him. "Then why weren't you up? Why had you gone to bed? Do I mean less to you than Tin-Tin does to Kyrano?"

Jeff growled and waved his right hand in frustration at Alan's ability to warp everything that anyone said. "You…" he said loudly and then stopped, took a deep breath and continued at a quieter volume. "Alan. You are one of the most obstinate young men I've ever had the opportunity of meeting. Will you listen to me and actually listen to what I say and not what you think I'm going to say. I had answered your last three questions before you asked them, if you had only bothered to listen you would have known that."

Alan frowned and tried to think back to what Jeff had said just a few moments before. He looked slightly ashamed and shook his head when he realised he didn't have a clue what his father was talking about.

"I had a feeling you hadn't really heard any of that," Jeff said quietly. "You asked why I wasn't up, why I'd gone to bed and whether you mean less to me than Tin-Tin does to Kyrano. The three go together so I'm going to talk and you are going to listen without interrupting. OK? Do you mean less to me than Kyrano? No, of course you don't. You're my son and I love you. Tin-Tin, however, is a teenage girl, with the emphasis on the gender in that sentence. If, and I'm not saying that you would, before you jump up and start getting all defensive on me…_if_ anything were to happen between yourself and Tin-Tin then it wouldn't be you that got hurt. Tin-Tin's smaller than you, weaker than you but above all she's female which carries a whole other set of potential problems with it. You are bigger, stronger and, for God's sake, Alan, you can't get pregnant. Now, do you understand why Kyrano was waiting up for you?"

Alan nodded slowly and then opened his mouth to speak before changing his mind and shutting it again with a snap.

"Very good," Jeff said with a smile and rested his hand gently on Alan's shoulder. "Do you also understand why I wasn't up?"

Alan looked between Jeff's eyes and Scott's and then blinked. "Because you didn't need to?" he asked quietly. "Because you knew I'd come back eventually…even if it was getting on for three o'clock and you knew that I wouldn't be pregnant when I came in?"

Scott tried to stop the splutter of laughter that threatened to bubble over at Alan's words. Unfortunately this just made him cough and he rocked back from his crouch until he was sitting on the floor and took a moment to calm himself down again.

"Sorry," he said eventually. "I must have swallowed something. Al, I love your take on things but what Dad's saying is that he trusts you enough that he doesn't feel the need to wait up for you to come back. He knows you'll come in eventually and that you'll be fine when you do. Kyrano just has more to worry about because of all the points that Dad mentioned before. Everyone knows you wouldn't do anything to hurt Tin-Tin deliberately but in our line of work we can't help but know that accidents happen. Kyrano was being a responsible parent, just like John was being yesterday and let's be honest, that's what this is really all about, isn't it? The fact that John didn't have an endless amount of time for you once he got back here yesterday?"

Alan dropped his gaze to his knees and sighed. "I just want things to be back to normal," he admitted quietly. "I barely got to see John how it was and now it's going to be worse 'cos Tin-Tin's going to have to go up to Five so I'm never going to see her either. John's going to be tied up with the baby all the time so I'm never going to get to see him, Virgil get's annoyed with me 'cos I interrupt him too much, you two are always busy so that just leaves me and Gordon but no-one will let us hang around together much 'cos you say we cause trouble." Alan's words petered out and he shrugged helplessly. "Sorry," he muttered. "I guess I sound like the self-centred, spoilt brat that everyone seems to think I am."

Scott clambered off the floor and sat on the opposite side of Alan to Jeff. "I thought we'd left all that behind when you left school," he said quietly. "No-one that actually knows you thinks that, you know that don't you?"

Alan shrugged again. "Still tired," he mumbled. "Brain working out of synch with mouth. Going to shut up now."

Jeff let out a sad smile and pulled Alan in for a hug. "I don't know how many times we've had this conversation with you but talk to us. Bottling things up isn't good for you and you know it always ends badly. I promised that I'd think about what the heck was going to happen with manning Five but she's John's baby, if you pardon the expression. The biggest changes are going to be for him, so I need to speak to him about it before I do anything else. I'll probably bring you in on the discussions in the aftermath of my talk with John but he's got quite enough on his plate at the moment and the last thing I want to do at the moment is upset him so I'm not even going to broach the subject for a couple of days. OK?"

Alan pulled himself out of the hug and nodded. "I guess so. It's just…oh, I don't know what it is, it's 'just'."

"And Johnny complains about my grasp of the English language," Scott commented from his spot beside Alan. "It's 'just' change is what it is. Change is a good thing and a bad thing in its own way and its time. There's nothing you can do about it apart from go with the flow and see what happens. Normality isn't entirely normal in this family at the best of times and the recent past definitely hasn't been the best of times. Normality will resume eventually but it may be subtly different from how we used to define normal."

Both Scott and Alan startled badly when John appeared from behind them and flung an arm around their shoulders. "That was very profound, Scotty," he said with a smile. "Your command of the English language is improving, I see."

Alan chuckled from inside the near-headlock that John was holding him in. "John," he squeaked. "How much of that did you hear?"

John released his hold on Scott so he could mess up Alan's hair while he was defenceless. "Not a lot," he replied. "I think I walked in on 'nothing you can do about it but go with the flow'. I take it I haven't interrupted something particularly deep and meaningful?"

"No, you're fine, John," Jeff replied and scrambled off the sofa when he realised that Alan was trying his hardest to reach up and grab a decent grip on John's shirt in a bid to pull him up and over his shoulder.

John was also aware of Alan's attempts and adjusted his grip on his youngest sibling. "Bit of help here, Scott," he hissed.

Scott grinned and immediately sided with John. He hooked his arms under Alan's legs and flicked him up and over the back of the sofa where he landed with a squeak. John was on him just a moment later and as Alan dissolved into shrieks of laughter, Scott looked over and met Jeff's approving eyes. He moved back towards the desk and shrugged. "Trust Johnny to sort him out," he murmured. "I think we'll leave them to it."

Jeff nodded and the pair went back to their paperwork and pointedly ignored the sounds of the two blonde boys playing on the floor behind the sofa.


	75. Chapter 75

~#~ (Chapter 75)

Alan seemed a lot happier by the time lunch came around and had the honour of strapping Jacob into his new dining room high chair before the family sat down to eat.

It was only once everyone had taken their places that Jeff realised that Virgil was missing. He pressed the button on his watch and waited for a response which never came. "Virgil, lunch is served. Come and join us," he spoke clearly into the watch but again, he received no reply.

The others were watching him and Jeff noticed that his eldest son was also worried about Virgil's failure to respond when Scott himself tried contacting his middle brother. "Scott, do you know what your brother's been doing this morning? I haven't seen him since he got up for breakfast at a suspiciously early hour."

Scott shook his head. "Haven't a clue," he admitted. "I've been with you all morning, although I'm pretty sure he headed off in the direction of the silo's as soon as he'd finished breakfast. Do you want me to go and find him?"

Alan jumped up before Jeff had the chance to answer. "I'll go," he said. "I…um…didn't have breakfast all that long ago so I'm not really hungry. You all go ahead and I'll call you when I find Virgil. Maybe there's a problem with his watch or something? If I can't find him then you could always sound the alarm, he's never failed to come running for that."

Jeff shrugged. "There is that, I suppose. You just make sure you yell as soon as you find him. If he's had an accident on his own down in one of the silos…" Jeff brought his statement to a sudden stop when he saw the colour drain from Alan's face. "Son, I'm sorry. I was just thinking out loud. Are you positive you want to go or do you want me to send Scott?"

Alan shook his head. "No. I said I would go and I'm sticking with that. If I need help I'll be sure to holler."

Jeff nodded and Scott patted Alan on the back as he headed off across the room.

~#~

Alan's first stop was the rocket picture that hid the beginning of the slide system that Virgil used to enter the cockpit of Thunderbird 2. He tilted the picture slightly and could see that Virgil's sled was still in place. 'He hasn't gone that way then,' he thought and hurried away through the maze of corridors that led to the silos.

Alan started, logically, with the silo that held Thunderbird 2 and its selection of pods. "Virgil," he yelled as the sliding doors opened out onto the massive cavern. "Virgil, are you here?"

There was no reply so Alan jogged to the other end of the conveyor belt that held the pods and yelled again. "Virgil. Dad wants you to come for lunch but I think your watch is broke. Can you hear me? Hellloooo."

Alan frowned and jogged back to where Thunderbird 2 sat quietly awaiting her next mission. "I bet you know where he is," he muttered. He stood and stared up at the green behemoth and a moment later a brainwave hit him. "That's a good point. I bet you can tell me _exactly_ where he is."

He scrambled around to the maintenance hatch and made his way through to Thunderbird 2's cockpit. "Right I'd like you to tell me where your Daddy is please." Alan stopped suddenly when he realised that Thunderbird 2 would neither respond to voice commands nor understand who her 'daddy' was. "Oh my God, the baby's been here less than twenty four hours and already I'm talking like a loon. I'm not even talking to him so what the hell am I waffling on about? Um, am I talking to you or am I talking to myself? Seeing as you're currently switched off and as dead as that proverbial doornail, I don't suppose there's much difference, is there?"

Alan leapt a good two feet in the air when someone cleared their throat loudly behind him. He spun around to find Virgil watching him from the doorway. The most artistic of the Tracy brothers was propped up against the bulkhead with his weight resting on one leg. His other leg with crossed over it in a casual, yet comfortable position and he had an amused expression on his face. "I can't work out which you're less impressed with at the moment, my baby or John's. What the heck are you doing in here anyway?"

Alan frowned. "I came looking for you," he said crossly. "You didn't turn up for lunch and Dad couldn't raise you. Scott couldn't either and you know how he gets when anyone goes missing. I wasn't all that hungry so I offered to come and find you. I told Dad there was probably nothing to worry about and that your watch is probably broken or something?"

Virgil stared at Alan for a long moment until he started to wriggle under the scrutiny. Eventually he seemed to come to a decision and let out a barking laugh. "My watch is working perfectly. It's just on a different frequency than the rest of yours at the moment."

Alan frowned again. "That's not possible," he argued. "You can't change the frequency just like that. You've been messing about with it and you've bust it, haven't you? Admit that you couldn't leave it alone and you've bust it just like you used to when we were kids."

Virgil raised an eyebrow in a manner that was very reminiscent of Scott. "I haven't 'bust it', 'broken it' or anything of the sort. I've changed the frequency so that I can speak to Brains without anyone else being aware of what we're doing."

Alan stared at Virgil and thought for a moment. "I don't think Dad would approve of that," he said eventually. "And just what is it that you're doing anyway?"

Virgil smirked. "Ah," he replied quietly. "Now that would be telling and if I told you…"

"_What_?" Alan looked at him incredulously. "Not that stupid line again. I had enough of that when I was little. If you don't tell me then I'll tell Dad you're up to something. You know as well as I do that he'll find out what it is, even if he doesn't entirely believe me."

Virgil let out a snort of laughter. "Hang on a minute." He pressed a button on his watch, which Alan noticed didn't look any different than before. "Brains," he said quietly. "You still there?"

Brains' picture appeared on Virgil's watch and he looked confused. "Of-of course I a-am," he replied. "Where e-else would I be?"

It was Alan's turn to snort this time. "He's got you there, Virg. There's not really anywhere else he could be right now."

Virgil rolled his eyes and ignored Alan's comment when Brains spoke again. "I-is that A-A-Alan?"

Virgil nodded. "Er, yeah," he replied. "I've sort of been rumbled. Seems we lost track of the time and I missed the start of lunch."

Alan looked at his own watch and swore. He jabbed at one of the buttons and said, rather loudly, "Dad, Scott, I found him. He…" He stopped and looked meaningfully across at Virgil. "We're in Thunderbird 2. Virgil's fine but he…um…left his watch on the counter when he changed into his overalls. It seems he got rather involved with what he was doing in here and lost track of time. Oh, and he says he's sorry if he worried anyone. I'm assuming, looking at the time, that we've missed most of lunch by now so I guess we might just stay down here and I can give him a hand to get things finished. OK?"

Jeff's face, carrying a not particularly happy expression, nodded. "You do that," he agreed. "But I have to say, the two of you _better_ be back up here before dinner or there's going to be trouble."

Alan looked up and found that Virgil had his watch in pieces. With a flourish, only really possible by Virgil, he flicked the device back over and pressed a screwdriver against the button on the side. "Don't worry, we'll be there," he said, rather breathlessly. "It's just…well, you know how it is when you get so engrossed in what you're doing that you lose all track of everything else…"

"Ah, Virgil, there you are." Jeff chuckled slightly and his expression lost its annoyed look. "Yes, we've all been guilty of that at one time or another. Are you sure you don't want to come up for something to eat? It's not like you to skip meals."

"No." Virgil shook his head. "I'm still kind of in the middle of something that I want to get finished. I'll make do with a ration bar from Two for now and I'll make up for it over dinner."

Jeff nodded. "I'll ask that Kyrano does extra seeing as Alan isn't going to be having anything now either. Try to get back in plenty of time, boys, I'd really like to get everyone around the table together."

Alan and Virgil looked at each other and grinned. "We will," they replied together and then disconnected their watches leaving their father looking at a blank screen.

~#~

Jeff looked across at Scott and saw that he looked just as baffled as Jeff himself felt. "Is it just me or did anyone else think it seemed like those two were up to something?" he asked.

John, who had by this point taken Jacob out of the high chair and had him sat on his knee, looked up. "Virgil and 'up to something' don't really go together," he pointed out. "…but yes, something definitely seemed off."

"I agree." Scott nodded. "Virg doesn't need to take his watch off to put his overalls on and even if he did remove it, for whatever reason, he'd _never_ forget to put it back on again."

Gordon stood up and swiped a slice of chocolate cake off the plate in the middle of the table. He broke a small piece off and sat it in front of Jacob and then sat down with a grin on his face as Jacob made a grab for the cake and crammed it into his mouth. "I say leave 'em be," he said quietly. "It's not like Virgil's going to be doing anything wrong. I know he's got Alan with him but well…it's Virgil."

Gordon shrugged and then smiled when he noticed that Jacob was staring at his cake. He broke another piece off and held it out to the little boy who grabbed it and stuffed it into his mouth before John had the chance to object.

"Gords, I think that's probably enough for now," John muttered quietly. "…or you're going to make him sick."

Gordon shrugged again and quickly ate the remaining cake off his plate to stave off any argument. Jeff and Scott watched in amusement as Jacob's head followed each of Gordon's movements until the plate was empty and he, very suddenly, lost interest.

Scott linked his hands together and lifted them above his head in a spine-popping stretch. "Anyone up for a walk," he asked. "I've been stuck in the office all morning and I feel like getting outside."

John nodded and held Jacob up on his feet on the table while he climbed out of his chair. He could feel Jeff's amused gaze upon him and flushed bright red as he pulled Jacob back into his arms. "Standing on tables. Not a good thing to start. Won't happen again. Sorry."

Jeff rolled his eyes and waved his hand in the direction of the door. "Enjoy your walk, all of you. I'll reiterate what I said to the others though. I want you all back here for dinner, if not a bit before."


	76. Chapter 76

~#~ (Chapter 76)

John, Jacob, Scott and Gordon had their walk and returned in plenty of time for dinner. Alan and Virgil appeared from the silos slightly after the others had come back inside. Alan was grimy and Virgil had oil smudges on his clothes but they both looked happy even though they said barely two words to the rest of the family before disappearing off into their rooms to wash up.

Grandma, who had been pottering around in her garden for most of the day, joined the family when they sat around the table for dinner. She and Jeff sat at either end of the table and for the first time in many years, the six remaining places were filled with direct members of the family. Scott and John sat in their usual places on either side of Jeff, Virgil sat beside Scott and Jacob, in his high chair sat next to John. Alan and Gordon sat on the last two seats beside their grandmother but rather than the usual configuration of Gordon beside Virgil and Alan sharing a side of the table with John, the youngest of Jeff's sons were reversed.

Gordon had noticed that Alan was still wary of Jacob whereas he himself had gelled with the little boy almost immediately. Seeing Alan's hesitation when the young astronaut had taken in the seating arrangements around the table he had slipped into Alan's usual chair without saying a word. Alan had paused uncertainly for a second and then walked around Grandma and dropped himself into the seat beside Virgil.

Virgil had looked back and forth between the two for a moment and then shrugged and turned his attention back to the conversation that was going on between Scott and their father.

~#~

The meal went off without a hitch and by the time everyone had finished eating, Jacob was fast asleep in his grandfather's arms.

Scott, John and Virgil remained at the table for a while, talking quietly with their father. Gordon challenged Alan to a game of pool and the pair headed off to the games room, side by side. Ruth pulled her rocking chair up to one of the picture windows and sat with her knitting on her knee as she watched the seabirds diving for their last few fish of the day.

Eventually, the good meal, the quiet drone of conversation in the background and the gentle darkening of the sky caught up with Ruth and she drifted off to sleep in her chair. Kyrano spotted her and smiled softly as he wandered past. He gently prised the knitting from her hands, covered her with a blanket and left her to sleep.

~#~

Jacob was still asleep almost an hour later and John decided that he had probably gone down for the night. He carefully lifted the sleeping child from Jeff's arms and carried him to his room. He decided against changing the little boy so he laid a towel in the bottom of the cot before putting Jacob gently on top of it and covering him with a blanket. Jacob snuggled against the soft towelling beneath him without really waking up.

~#~

Ruth was still asleep in her chair when Virgil passed her on his way to bed. He squatted down and gently shook her awake. "Grandma," he whispered. "It's time you were in bed. If you spend the night in the chair you're going to regret it in the morning."

Ruth looked sleepily up at her middle grandson. "I suppose you're right dear. This old body of mine just isn't up to that sort of thing any more. Help me up, would you?"

Virgil untangled Ruth from the blanket and helped her to her feet before holding out his arm and escorting his grandmother to her suite of rooms at the back of the house. He kissed her goodnight at the door and waited until she had disappeared inside before he headed off to his own bed.

~#~

All was quiet in the Tracy villa until a little before two o'clock when Jacob woke up in distress. Despite John's precaution of putting the little boy to sleep on the towel, his clothes still became wet and uncomfortable due to his not being changed before he was put down for the night.

Jacob let out a loud, piercing cry which woke his father. John scrambled out of bed and bundled Jacob, towel, blanket and all, into his arms and then winced at the clammy, dampness that immediately soaked into his T-shirt.

"Eugh, I'm sorry, little one," he whispered. "Let's get your sorted out."

He carried a sobbing Jacob, through into the other room and laid him on the changing table. The sobbing stopped almost as soon as the moon and twinkling stars appeared on the ceiling and John was able to strip his son without too much trouble. He wiped the little boy down with baby wipes and then decided that he probably wasn't clean enough to prevent him from becoming sore. John thought for a moment and then pulled off his slightly damp T-shirt and wrapped it carefully around Jacob's bottom before picking him up again.

Jacob snuggled against the soft, warm skin on John's chest as he was carried through into the bathroom. John leaned over and flicked on the shower and then turned the temperature down to a level which he hoped would be comfortable for Jacob, albeit this would make it a little cool for John himself. He got Jacob's soap and shampoo off the shelf by the sink and put them on the soap tray in the shower before rechecking the temperature of the water.

Once he was confident that the temperature was right, John dithered for a moment and then stepped into the shower, still wearing the lightweight pyjama shorts that he'd gone to bed in. Jacob whimpered when John eased him slowly into the spray of water but soon seemed to realise that he was both warm and comfortable in the shower.

Once Jacob had settled down, John unwound his now-sopping-wet T-shirt from around the little boy and threw it in the corner of the shower cubicle, out of the way. He carefully washed Jacob all over and then struggled but succeeded in washing his hair without getting too much of it in Jacob's eyes. He was just trying to work out the logistics of getting back out of the shower when there was a gentle knock on the bathroom door.

"Johnny. You OK in there?" Scott spoke quietly but John could just hear him over the noise of the shower. "Do you need me to get you anything?"

John chuckled as Jacob flapped his arm around in the water. "Scott, we're in the shower. Can you come in here and take Jacob so I can get out?"

There was a long pause and John began to wonder if Scott hadn't heard him. "Scott. Are you still there? Could you please come and take Jacob before I catch a chill."

Scott pushed the door open and walked into the bathroom with a large, soft towel which he unfolded. He lay it across his shoulder and smiled as John passed Jacob to him. He wrapped the little boy in the towel and carried him from the room as John cranked up the heat on the shower and plunged himself into the now much warmer water.

~#~

John removed his shorts and stayed in the shower just long enough to warm up. He quickly washed his hair and then switched off the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist before wandering back through into his sitting room to find his brother.

Scott had wrapped Jacob in a dry towel and was pacing around the room as he rubbed the little boy dry. Jacob was grizzling from within the towel and as John listened he realised that Jacob's grumbles were gradually getting louder as if he was winding up for a full on tantrum. "Uh oh," he murmured. "I think we may be in trouble."

Scott nodded as he uncovered Jacob's head and gently rubbed his hair. "Me too. I don't think someone's overly impressed with all this going on in the middle of the night. I'll get this one sorted, you get some clothes on and go and get some milk ready. We'll meet you in the kitchen as soon as I can manage it."

John hurried through into his bedroom and quickly dried himself. He pulled on some underwear, a pair of comfortable sweatpants and a clean T-shirt and then scrubbed his hair with the towel before it could wet too much of his top. He hurried back into the sitting room when he heard Jacob start up a high pitched wailing cry and found that Scott had managed to wrestle the little boy into a vest but was failing to get him into a new sleep-suit due to the angry vigour with which Jacob was now flailing his arms and legs around.

Scott gave up his attempt to dress Jacob and handed John the sleep-suit and a blanket before bundling Jacob up into his arms. "We need to get him out of here before he wakes the whole house," he hissed. "Kitchen. Now."

John slapped the touchpad to open the door and stood back to allow Scott past. Scott carried Jacob out of the room and away down the corridor.

~#~

Jeff's door opened as John drew level with it. "Everything alright?" he asked sleepily. "Jacob doesn't sound too happy. He's not sick, I hope?"

John shook his head. "No," he replied. "He was wet and he didn't like it. He's clean and dry now but it's left him angry. Scott's taking him to the kitchen so we don't disturb everyone. Hopefully he'll calm down and go back to sleep once he has a little milk inside him."

Jeff nodded sympathetically. "Do you need any help?"

"No," John said. "Scott and I will cope. You go back to bed and we'll try not to disturb you when we come back past."

Jeff shrugged and patted John's arm before turning to go back into his room. A particularly shrill cry came from the direction of the kitchen and John hurried away, closing the door to the bedroom corridor as he went through it.

~#~

John skidded into the kitchen and closed that door behind himself as well. He saw that Scott had Jacob tucked under his chin and that he was desperately trying to keep him quiet while the bottle warmer did its job.

"Here," he said quietly as he held his hands out for Jacob. "Let me be screamed at for a minute. This is my fault, after all's said and done."

Scott shrugged and handed over the shrieking infant. He wandered across to where the bottle warmer sat, took the bottle out and shook it vigorously before putting it back down. "There's got to be a faster way of heating it up than this," he complained. "This is pathetic. I'm gonna ask Virg if he can come up with something better."

"The tried and tested method of dunking it in boiling water would be faster," John pointed out. "Although infinitely less safe than…OW…" John had been stroking Jacob's face in an attempt to calm him and the little boy had somehow managed to turn his head and sink his two bottom teeth into his father's thumb. "OK, OK, I get the idea. Warm or not warm, that bottle will have to do. Pass it over because I don't think this one's prepared to wait even one second more for it."

Scott pulled the bottle back out of the warmer, shook it again and then handed it to John who quickly stuck it in Jacob's mouth. He latched on to the teat pretty much immediately and gulped down the lukewarm liquid as fast as he could get it. This turned out to be slightly faster than he could cope with and without any warning he suddenly spluttered, made a loud, wet choking sound and then let out an ear-splitting, pain-filled squeal.

The shrill noise was louder and of a different pitch than anything either John or Scott had heard Jacob make in the time they had known him. John looked dismayed and heaved his son up over his shoulder and tapped him firmly on the back several times. This made Jacob let out a number of loud belches and eventually his squealing tapered down to a sorrowful whining which was interspersed with a bout of vicious hiccups that shook the little boy's body.

Scott stood beside John while he worked on calming Jacob down. He smiled when Jacob's screaming fit gradually eased off but the smile slid from his face when he caught sight of the devastated look in John's eyes.

John's expression crumbled as he removed Jacob from his shoulder and cuddled him tightly. "I'm sorry," he whispered to the little boy. "It's a mess and it's all my fault. Don't cry, please don't cry."

Scott moved closer and rested his chin on John's shoulder. He rubbed John's back and then wrapped his arms around both his brother and his nephew in a comforting show of support.

"We were organised before we came back," John murmured eventually. "We had a routine going and I had everything where I needed it, when I needed it. I can't believe I was stupid enough to think he'd stay asleep for the night if I didn't change him and I was doubly stupid in not taking a bottle to bed with me." John let out a quiet sob and shifted his grip on Jacob so he could include Scott's arm in his hug. "We woke Dad up," he said brokenly. "I know there's no chance we disturbed Virgil and that Gordon wouldn't care one way or another but if we woke Alan then he's going to hate Jacob even more than he already does."

Scott dug him chin into John's shoulder. "Alan doesn't hate him," he replied. "He just doesn't know him yet. He was alright with him at the beginning of lunch yesterday, now wasn't he?"

John thought back and let out a one-sided shrug. "I guess," he said. "…but he wouldn't sit next to him at dinner. Gordon and Alan had swapped places, there's no way you didn't notice."

"I noticed," Scott replied. "I also noticed what you might not have done, that it was Gordon's decision to sit where he did...not Alan's. Alan had sort of stopped and wasn't sure what to do so Gordy took the decision out of his hands by sitting next to Jacob. You said before that you thought you'd never get any time with Jacob because of Grandma, Tin-Tin, Onaha and possibly Father. Well, I think you might need to swap out Tin-Tin and Onaha with Gordon. It's going to be more of a challenge keeping him away from Jacob than the other two."

John snorted. "I think you might be right," he agreed. "Gordon's got a more-than-willing snuggle partner in Jacob and I have a feeling it's something he's going to exploit as much as he possibly can, for as long as he can get away with it."

Scott was glad when he heard the smile in John's words. Jacob had calmed right down in John's slightly over-tight embrace and was quietly chewing on his fist. "Shall we take the bottle and the baby outside for a bit? The fresh air might persuade him to go back to sleep faster than the air-conditioned air in here."

John nodded. "That sounds like a plan," he replied. "I have the baby and the bottle, you get the lights."

Scott flicked the switch for the poolside lights and the trio of Tracys wandered out of the villa and down the stairs towards the pool. Scott move a pair of sun-loungers until they were side by side and then he and John sat down in a companionable silence.

~#~

Eventually Jacob decided that he was ready for another go with his bottle and took the milk at a much more sensible speed. He was still partially awake when he finished the drink but fell asleep over John's shoulder while he was being winded.

The two brothers remained by the pool for another few minutes until they were certain that Jacob was fast asleep and then Scott motioned for John to move back into the house.

John wandered through into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle out of the fridge while Scott closed the doors and switched off the outside lights. The pair then set off back through the silent house and separated at the door to John's suite.

"Shout if you need me," Scott whispered. "Well, maybe not shout but you know what I mean and you know where I am."

John smiled. "I will," he replied, just as quietly as Scott had spoken. "…although you seem to know I need you before I do myself. Thanks for your help this morning, Scott and I'm sorry we disturbed you."

Scott shook his head. "Not a problem, Johnny. Not a problem. You get that little man into his cot and get yourself to bed. I'll keep the others out of the way to make sure they don't disturb you in the morning. Don't worry if you don't come down for breakfast until late. OK?"

John nodded and pressed the touchpad to open the door. He closed the door once he had passed through the doorway and padded quietly across to his bedroom. He did a double-take when the bedroom door slid open. Rather than the slightly rumpled bedcovers that he'd been expecting, there was a rather obvious mound which signified someone sleeping in his bed. John crept over to the cot and lay Jacob down. He sat one of the peach-coloured teddy bears within easy reach of his son's hand and then covered him with a blanket.

Once Jacob was settled in the cot, John slipped out and quickly used the bathroom. He returned and checked to see that Jacob was still where he'd left him and then sat on the edge of his bed to deal with whomever had taken up residence his room.

~#~

As John had suspected, his room-invader was Alan. Having been woken by Jacob's cries he had eventually made his way from his own room to John's, only to find it empty. In his half asleep state it hadn't dawned on him to go looking for his brother and he had crawled under the covers of John's bed and had fallen back to sleep.

John was undecided what to do with him seeing that he was fast asleep in the middle of the double bed. Eventually he decided it would be cruel to try and evict Alan in the middle of the night and settled on shoving him over to one side of the bed before climbing in himself.


	77. Chapter 77

~#~ (Chapter 77)

Scott spent the early part of the next morning running backwards and forwards between the bedroom corridor and the rest of the house. He planned to hear when Jacob woke up and intended to grab the little boy before he could disturb his father so that John could get some more sleep.

The plan was sound and would have worked if not for the fact that Scott got sucked into a conference call which lasted almost half an hour. Typically Jacob chose this twenty eight minute window to wake up in and it was only Gordon's speedy intervention that allowed the slumbering brothers to remain asleep.

Gordon finished his morning swim and returned to his room to shower. He dried and dressed himself quickly, as usual and then headed out into the house in search of breakfast.

As he passed John's door, Gordon heard Jacob cooing softly and he stopped to listen with a gentle smile on his face. The sound was muffled by the door and also by the distance between Gordon and the Jacob but Gordon could still hear his nephew quietly babbling away to himself.

There were no other noises from inside the room but Gordon knew that John was still inside and that his brother had not had a good night. He leant backwards and looked down the corridor in the hope that Scott would be doing one of his Jacob-checks but his eldest brother was nowhere to be seen.

Gordon had a moment of indecision and then shrugged to himself and swiped his hand across the touchpad which controlled John's door. He crossed the astronaut's impeccably tidy sitting room and slipped through the open door to the bedroom beyond.

~#~

Jacob, who had managed to sit himself up in the cot, looked around and let loose a stream of babble when he saw Gordon approaching. John, who was lying on his side and facing the cot, shifted slightly in the bed, disturbed by the noise and Gordon winced as he fully expected his brother to suddenly spring fully awake. The aquanaut put a finger in front of his mouth and let out a shushing noise before reaching into the cot and lifting Jacob, his blanket and his bear up into his arms. "Don't disturb your Daddy," he whispered. "You did enough of that in the night, if what I've heard this morning is true."

Jacob snuggled into Gordon's arms and the young man stood and waited for a moment to make sure that John had settled properly back to sleep.

A puzzled frown crossed Gordon's face as he stood and studied his brother. He knew John had had a disturbed night and Scott had told him that Jacob had been completely stripped, cleaned and showered before John had taken him outside in an attempt to persuade him to go back to sleep. What he didn't know, and couldn't understand, was why John's bed was quite such a mess. Rather than the barely-slept-in look that John's bed usually carried, it was in complete disarray. There were covers piled up on the opposite side of the bed to where John was sleeping and the main bulk of John himself was only covered by a thin sheet.

Gordon jumped when the mountain of covers twitched slightly, as if it knew it was being watched. "What the heck went on in here last night?" he whispered as he looked down at the little boy in his arms. Jacob smiled up at him in reply. "Very informative, Jakey. Thank you _very_ much. You know, I think we need to play 'who's in bed with Daddy?' It shouldn't be too hard, bearing in mind the limited number of people available. Once we've worked it out we can have a sneaky look and see if we're right. You've got to stay quiet though, 'cos we don't want to wake anybody up."

Gordon paused and chuckled to himself at the completely one-sided conversation he was having with Jacob. "Right, I've seen Scott, Grandma and your Granddad so it's none of them. Kyrano and Onaha were both about before I had my swim so that's them out as well. Virgil's not the sort to climb into bed with anyone apart from Scott and no-one would dare sleep with Tin-Tin, even if it _was_ just sleeping and therefore completely innocent. Brains is up on Five so the only person left that it could possibly be is your uncle Alan. Do you think I'm right?"

Jacob responded with something that sounded like 'blap' and let loose a trail of drool that ran down his chin. Gordon shook his head and quickly mopped up the dribble with Jacob's blanket. "Lovely. Now, let's have a look, shall we? Be _very_ quiet. Shhh."

Gordon crept round the bed and carefully leaned over and pulled down the covers to uncover an unruly mop of golden hair. He pulled the covers down a little further to work out how Alan was lying and found that his youngest brother was curled up behind John with his forehead resting tightly against one of John's shoulder blades. Gordon smiled at the serene look on Alan's face before covering him up again. "Crazy kid," he whispered to Jacob. "Let's leave them to it and get some breakfast. Sound good?"

Jacob let out another stream of dribble and then startled badly when he began to hiccup.

"Definitely time for breakfast. Let's get out of here." Gordon carried Jacob out of the room and slid the bedroom door closed behind himself. He squatted in front of the changing station and gathered together the things he'd need to get Jacob changed and then headed for the lounge.

~#~

Gordon, with help from Grandma, had almost finished changing Jacob when Scott finally escaped from Jeff's office. The eldest Tracy brother headed immediately across the house towards the bedrooms and Gordon found himself having to call him back with a quiet yell.

"Scott," he called. "Stop. I've got him."

Scott skidded to a halt, spun around and headed for Gordon. "Oh," he murmured. "That plan didn't...er... go to plan then. Hey you." Scott leaned over the back of the sofa where Gordon had been changing Jacob and poked the little boy gently on the stomach.

Jacob let out a peel of laughter and grabbed at Scott's hand.

"He's in a good mood this morning," Ruth commented. "Seeing as how he had such a bad night. I'm going to get a bottle ready, if you're alright here now, Gordon?"

Gordon nodded and did up the last of the buttons on Jacob's outfit. That done he lifted Jacob into his arms and scrambled to his feet. "I didn't wake him," he said quietly looking at Scott with a worried expression on his face. "I heard him chattering away to himself when I walked past so I went to investigate. He'd sat himself up and was happily playing with his blanket but I thought I'd get him out of there before he got fed up and started yelling."

Scott nodded. "You did good," he murmured and then held his arms out for Jacob. "I know for a fact that you haven't eaten yet so how about you hand him over and I'll feed him while you feed yourself? Kyrano's already got your breakfast underway, judging by the smell and with Grandma in the kitchen he'll know to do Jacob some as well."

~#~

Gordon, Scott and Jacob walked through into the dining room and sat down. Scott took John's usual seat beside the high chair and Gordon sat in his newly claimed spot on the other side of Jacob. Jeff joined them several minutes later. He kissed Jacob on the head and then poured himself and Scott a cup of coffee before sitting down at the head of the table. "Someone's looking very smart this morning," he commented. "...although I don't think much of his chances of staying that way once his breakfast arrives. You need to roll his sleeves up, at the very least."

Jeff took one arm and Scott took the other and by the time they'd finished rolling Jacob's sleeves up over his elbows Grandma and Kyrano had appeared with the breakfast. Grandma produced a large bib from the pocket of her apron and tied it carefully around Jacob's neck. "That's should stop you getting in such a mess," she said as she smiled down at the little boy and stroked his hair. "Scott, dear, can I assume by where you're sitting that you're going to be doing the honours this morning?

Scott nodded and held his hand out for the plastic plate containing Jacob's breakfast. "I certainly am," he replied. "Daddy's having a...Virg, you OK over there?"

Virgil, who was wearing a dirty, pair of blue overalls and had a huge roll of red and yellow cable hanging over one shoulder, had wandered into the room while Scott had been speaking. He had looked around and had started to walk back out again when Scott's call stopped him.

"Virg, you OK?" Scott repeated when Virgil stopped but didn't immediately acknowledge him.

Gordon swallowed the mouthful of food that he'd been eating and turned around on his chair. Virgil was completely still and had a 'deer caught in the headlights' expression on his face. "Earth calling Virgil," Gordon called with a chuckle. "Are you receiving me?"

Jeff looked up from the newspaper he'd been reading and rolled his eyes. "Virgil. Answer your brothers."

Virgil jumped back slightly at Jeff's loud-but-affable tone. "Um...hi. I was looking for Alan. Has anyone seen him this morning?"

Gordon, who had turned back to his food, waved his fork in the air and growled. He made a point of chewing his food in an exaggerated manner and then swallowed loudly. "So much for a peaceful breakfast," he grumbled and then turned back towards Virgil. "Alan's asleep."

Virgil shook his head. "No, he's not," he argued. "I checked his room when I got up but he wasn't there. I checked again a while ago and he wasn't in there then, either."

Gordon rolled his eyes again. "I said he was asleep," he said slowly. "I just didn't say where. He's in John's room and from the state of the bed I'd say he's been in there for most of the night."

Scott turned around in his chair until he was facing Gordon. "If he's in John's bed then where's John?"

"Oh, he's there as well. About this far..." Gordon put his finger and thumb together and held them up. "...from Alan. They look very cute together. Don't they, Jakey?"

Jacob threw the piece of toast he was holding and it landed in the middle of Gordon's plate. Gordon shrugged and stabbed it with his fork. He cut the slightly soggy toast in half, dipped it one of his grilled tomatoes and then held it out to Jacob who obligingly opened his mouth for it. Gordon smiled and then waited for a moment and repeated the procedure with the other half of the piece of toast.

Scott watched as Virgil stepped backwards and looked through the door to the room beyond. "What now?" he asked. "Virg, are you sure you're OK? You're acting kind of...I don't know but you're not acting like you."

Virgil frowned. "I'm fine," he replied quietly. "I'm just busy doing...um...stuff. Does anyone know where Tin-Tin is? If Alan's not about then she can probably help me."

"I'll help you, if you give me half an hour or so," Scott offered. "I'll come and find you when I'm done giving Titch his breakfast. Where are you working? In Two's silo again?"

Virgil worried his bottom lip with his teeth. "Um...no, not exactly. I...ah, Tin-Tin, great timing. I need your help. Come with me."

~#~

Tin-Tin, who had walked in from the kitchen to check for dirty plates, found herself propelled out of the room and across the lounge before she had the chance to reply.

Scott raised an eyebrow and met his father's incredulous eyes. Jeff shook his head and smiled. "Apparently he's got what he came for," he commented. "...but I'd wager that he's going to be getting a tongue-lashing when Tin-Tin finally manages to stop him hauling her around. It wasn't even vaguely polite to just pull her from the room like that."

~#~

Virgil kept his hand on Tin-Tin's arm until they were deep within the tunnels under the villa and safely out of earshot of the others.

He slammed one of the large fire doors shut and then released her. "That was rude, I'm sorry," he gasped. "I just had to get away before Scott thought about following. I couldn't have him finding out what we've been doing down here. He'd never go along with not telling Dad and that'd spoil everything."

Tin-Tin put her hand on his arm. "Virgil calm down," she said quietly. "I'm alright...a little shaken maybe but I know that you'd never hurt me. How about you start by telling me why you felt the need to drag me down here when I'm supposed to be clearing the table and then we'll take it from there."

Virgil looked her straight in the eye. "You've got to promise you won't speak to anyone about what I'm going to show you," he said earnestly. "Apart from Brains...oh, and Alan, because as of yesterday he knows about it as well."

"Virgil, you're making it sound like you're up to something illegal," Tin-Tin pointed out. "If you promise that it's nothing dangerous and that it's at least vaguely sensible then I'll promise not to breathe a word to anyone other than Brains and Alan."

Virgil nodded and held out his hand. "I promise," he replied. "...and I promise it's not dangerous although when Dad finds out he might just hit the roof. Once he sits down and thinks about it he'll come round though, it's a great idea and a solution to what could potentially become a major headache for him."

Tin-Tin looked sceptical but linked hands with Virgil and allowed him to lead her, slowly this time, further into the depths of the island.


	78. Chapter 78

~#~ (Chapter 78)

Scott fed Jacob the rest of his breakfast which gave Gordon time to finish his own. The three of them eventually left Jeff at the table and moved into the sitting room where a collection of toys was gradually gathering.

"We need to get some sort of toy box for in here," Scott commented as he picked up a collection of stacking cups and carried them over to where Gordon was sitting with Jacob. "Either that or we need to convert one of the spare rooms into some sort of playroom."

Gordon frowned. "That doesn't seem altogether fair," he argued. "This is where it's all at, where everyone meets and talks and…well, it's where everyone is more than any other _normal_ part of the house. You can't banish Jacob to another room, it wouldn't be right."

Scott waved him down. "That wasn't what I meant and you know it. I'm just thinking that his things are going to last longer if there's a particular place for them to go. If things are just in here, Johnny's room, the kitchen or whatever, they're going to get lost or broken more easily. If there was a box or a room for everything to go in when it's not being played with then everyone, including Jacob when he's old enough, is going to know where to find what they're looking for."

Gordon shrugged again. "It never did us any harm back when we were little," he replied. "The lounge was the hub of all things then, just like it is now, and we always had our stuff all over it."

Scott chuckled when Jeff's voice floated through the open door to the dining room. "That's because yours and Alan's stuff was spread over the entire house. The pair of you made more mess than the other three put together." Jeff's words were getting louder as he wandered into the room with the paper under his arm. He sat down on one of the sofa's and smiled at Gordon who was sitting on the floor with Jacob propped up between his legs. "Mind you, Scott and Virgil had the monopoly on the garage and the garden and Johnny spent most of his time on the roof so I suppose it was only fair that you two had the run of the house. At least you were where we could see you, well most of the time anyway."

Gordon flushed red when he realised that his father was thinking back on the many times that child-Gordon had done a vanishing act, something that had sent Alan running to Jeff each and every time he lost track of his troublemaking brother. "Alan was just so gullible," he whispered. "He fell for it every time and never once thought to ask where I went when I disappeared."

"I never knew where you went either," Jeff admitted with a shake of his head. "I just knew that you'd always reappear when the next meal was put on the table. You know, it's probably a good thing that you never thought to stay missing past the start of one of those meals or I would have been onto the cops like a shot."

Gordon grinned. "You really didn't know where I went?" he asked incredulously. "You never noticed my cool little set-up in that funny shaped corner behind the boiler? I don't believe it, the amount of times you had to go down there to reset that damned thing."

"There was a heck of a lot of junk in that cellar," Jeff replied with a chuckle. "…and most of it's still there now. If you were behind the boiler then I guess you'd have been under the kitchen. Is that how you always knew when to come back up?"

Gordon nodded. "Yeah. I could hear when the kitchen was being used and I knew it was time to sneak back upstairs when the smell of the food told me it was just about done."

The sound of running footsteps suddenly started coming from the corridor that led from the bedrooms. Just a few seconds later John burst into the room, bounced off the doorframe and then stopped, panting, at the edge of the room.

"Is there something we can do for you?" Jeff asked in an amused tone. "You seemed in rather a hurry to get yourself in here."

John looked up to find Jeff, Scott, Gordon and Jacob looking at him. "I…um…" he spluttered. "I woke up and he wasn't there." John waved a hand in Jacob's direction and then slowly slunk across the room and dropped himself on the floor in front of Gordon. "Sorry. I may have panicked."

Scott reached over and patted him on the shoulder. "Well you can unpanic now," he said gently. "Jacob's fine and he's had a good breakfast." Scott rested a hand on Jacob's head and chuckled when Jacob beamed up at him. "Haven't you, little one?"

John clapped his hands together gently to attract Jacob's attention, he then lifted him into his arms and gave him a cuddle. "You look very smart, young man," he commented. "…and you've beaten me to getting dressed. I suppose I should really go and do something about that."

John gave the little boy a kiss and handed him back to Gordon. He stood up and turned to leave, only to have to stop dead in order to avoid colliding with Alan who was stumbling into the room.

Alan, with his hair in complete disarray, looked blearily up at John and then threw himself onto the sofa beside Jeff. He curled up on his side and rested his head on his father's knee. "He's quieter this morning," he commented, pointing at Jacob who gurgled and waved a hand in his direction. "What was up with him last night? He was loud enough to wake the whole house."

Jeff ran his hand through Alan's unruly hair as he thought how best to reply. Looking around the room he realised that John had continued on his way to get dressed and he let out a deep breath. "You'll have to bear with him, Alan. Everything here's new to him and John hasn't got him back into a proper routine yet. You've got to remember that this is all pretty new to John as well. It goes back to what we were saying yesterday, you've got to give it time."

Alan half heartedly nodded against Jeff's leg. "Sorry," he muttered. "I'm trying but it's hard."

Jeff tugged gently on Alan's hair. "We know," he said softly. "…and we'd do well to remember that you're the only one of us who hasn't been through this before. Mind you, I can't imagine you, Gordon, can remember a lot from when Alan was tiny?"

"I don't remember much, just him squealing a lot," Gordon replied with a shrug. "…and I remember always being told not to touch him in case I hurt him. I only wanted him to play with me but, in hindsight, I'm not sure what I was expecting him to do when he couldn't even sit up on his own."

Scott snorted. "Being truthful though, Gordy, you were a real pain when Al was little. I'm sure half the problem was the fact that you were too young to really understand what was going on when he was born. All you knew was that you were a big brother to a little brother who you couldn't see, hear, touch or visit and I reckon that you were trying to make up for lost time once he finally came home."

Gordon shrugged again. "I don't really remember enough the time to say whether you're right or wrong. I do remember Alan chasing me around on all fours though. Once he started crawling there was no stopping him. He can't have been all that much bigger than Jacob is now."

"He wasn't much bigger," Jeff commented. "Although you need to remember he was quite a bit older." Jeff paused and patted Alan's hair. "It took you a while to catch up after your shaky start but I think you've turned out alright."

Alan blushed and sat up, pulling his head out of Jeff's reach. "I'm going to get breakfast," he mumbled. "If there's anything left after Scott's been at it."

Jeff looked over and spotted the twinkle in Scott's eyes. Alan was still a little confused by the changes that were taking place due to the arrival of Jacob but he wasn't struggling too badly. Jeff nodded gently. It would take time but everyone and everything would be worked out in the end.

~#~

Several hours later the first rescue call in over a week came in. Everyone had dispersed around the island so Jeff quietly took the call from Brains before pressing the alarm to summon everyone back to the house.

Scott, as ever, was first to arrive, having been in the kitchen waiting for Grandma's cookies to finish baking. Gordon appeared shortly after Scott, wrapped in a towel and fresh from the pool, closely followed by John and Jacob who had been sitting by poolside watching him swim.

There was a small pause and then Virgil, Alan and Tin-Tin arrived together. Alan and Tin-Tin both wore particularly sheepish expressions and looked as if they'd been involved in a water-gun fight with a pair of guns loaded with grease. Virgil hadn't faired much better and looked as if he'd been caught in the crossfire between the warring sides in the grease battle.

Jeff raised his eyebrows at the state of the three of them and silently prayed that the grease would remain on the people rather than slipping onto the floor. He'd heard enough of Ruth's lectures over the years to know full well that grease, of any description, was not good when combined with a finely woven carpet.

Unfortunately for Alan, Virgil and Tin-Tin, they were followed into the room by the lady herself. No-one was aware of her entrance until a cry of 'Oh my' went up from the doorway before the door slammed closed again.

Only moments later Ruth returned brandishing several large sheets of flip-chart paper. She hastily laid them on the floor and pointed, first to Alan, then Virgil and then to Tin-Tin. Alan and Tin-Tin shot across the room and stood on the paper almost immediately but Virgil apparently reacted too slowly for Ruth's liking. The diminutive little woman marched up to her middle grandson and grabbed him by his right ear. To Virgil's horror, and everyone else's amusement, Ruth then proceeded to drag the mortified man across the room by his ear and deposited him on his allocated piece of paper with a loud 'humph'.

Jeff paused for a moment to check that Virgil was alright and then turned to look at Brains who was patiently waiting in the spot where John's portrait was usually displayed. "Boys," he said quietly. "Brains has a job for you. A group of cavers went deep into the Lechuguilla Cave in New Mexico two days ago and haven't been heard from since. Apparently they were in constant radio contact until late last night when they suddenly fell silent. Their guide was carrying a beacon but it seems this is malfunctioning along with their radio equipment and the Park Service are asking our help in locating the group. Unfortunately, unless absolutely necessary, using the Mole will be out of the question, due to the rare and delicate nature of the caverns. Brains is confident that our equipment will be able to locate the cavers and, with a lot of luck, you'll be able to retrieve them without causing too much damage to the surrounding area. Scott, get going and fill Virgil in when you get there. Virgil…" Jeff stopped and sighed. "You're going to have to use the slow route today, I'm afraid otherwise you're going to mess up the interior of Two before you even get started. Gordon, take the chute down, you can swap with your brother once Mucky over there has got himself into some clean clothes."

Scott disappeared behind his revolving doorway while Gordon looked down at himself and shrugged. Virgil may have been dirty but Gordon was only clad in swimming trunks and a towel, hardly appropriate attire for flying off down Two's cold, dark entry chute. He shrugged again and wrapped the towel tightly around his waist before startling badly when a warm cotton shirt suddenly appeared over one of his shoulders.

John had realised Gordon's dilemma and had sat Jacob carefully on the floor between his legs while he stripped off his shirt. He pulled his undershirt back into place when he discovered it had come untucked from his trousers and then draped his still-warm pastel-pink shirt over one of Gordon's shoulders.

"Thanks Johnny," Gordon whispered as he pulled the shirt on over his head. "You're a life saver."

John grinned as he bent down to pick Jacob back off the floor. "Not as often as you, Gords," he replied. "Not as often as you."

Gordon worried that John was sounding a little wistful but one look into his brother's clear blue eyes told the red-head that he had nothing to be concerned about. He nodded to Virgil, rested his back against the picture of Jeff's rocket and moments later he was gone.

Without getting off his piece of paper, Virgil leaned over and poked Alan hard in the ribs. He gave his youngest brother a knowing look and then silently stalked from the room.

Jeff shared a look with John who was watching the interactions between his brothers with interest. Alan took hold of Tin-Tin's hand and turned towards his father. "Dad…can we…um…do you want us to stay?"

Jeff smiled. "Alan, much as I'd like you to stay and take an active, or at least interested, part of this rescue I'm sadly going to have to say no. If the pair of you don't get out of this room in the next thirty seconds then there's a damn fine chance that Grandma will catch up with you again and I don't fancy your chances if you mess up the house. Go, both of you, and quickly."

Alan and Tin-Tin didn't wait to be told twice. They shot from the room like scared rabbits and left John, Jeff and Jacob staring after them in bemusement.

"Dad…" John started. "What about me?"

Jeff looked up at him before silently standing up and holding his hands out for Jacob. John dropped his son into his father's arms with a confused look on his face until Jeff nodded his head towards the desk. "There's a chair there, son," he said quietly. "You might want to sit down."

John frowned for a moment and then his eyebrows shot up towards his hair. "Really?" he asked. "Are you sure?"

Jeff nodded as he hoisted Jacob higher up into his arms. "For now," he replied. "It might be something to think about for the future as well. It'll take the pressure off Scott for the times when I'm not available and he'll feel less like he's had his wings clipped if he knows he's not going have to fly the desk each and every time I go away."

John gingerly sat down in the chair and then looked sheepishly up at his father. "You're not just going to tell me to sit here and then disappear off somewhere, are you?"

"Why?" Jeff replied. "Because you haven't sat there and coordinated a rescue before?" John shrugged which made Jeff roll his eyes before he continued. "What do you think you do when you're up there?" Jeff adjusted his hold on Jacob and pointed up at the ceiling. "It's no different down here, although I admit it's quieter and there's a lot less equipment around. You and Scott run most rescues between yourselves with little input from myself. If you want my help then I'm here for asking, otherwise just see how you get on for now."

John's nod was almost immediately followed by Scott's request for clearance to take-off. John smiled softly at Jeff, checked the appropriate screen to look for nearby aircraft and then pressed the button to connect him to Thunderbird 1. "Thunderbird 1, this is Control. Clearance granted, have a good flight."

Jeff chuckled low in his throat at John's very prim and proper communication with his brother and he nodded at his blonde son. Scott was obviously in the same situation as there was a long pause before he finally replied. "Thank you, Control. Will be in touch once I'm approaching the danger zone."


	79. Chapter 79

~#~ (Chapter 79)

The rescue, as it turned out, was pretty much over before it had begun. Scott landed as close as he dared to the collection of buildings housing the Carlsbad Caverns' visitor centre and then, with help from some of the staff and resident geologists there, identified a safe place for Virgil to land the massive bulk of Thunderbird 2. Due to the phenomenal weight of the huge green craft it was decided that Virgil would have to set down a fair way from the cave entrance. Gordon and Virgil would then have to secure Two and travel via hoverbike to meet up with Scott at the visitor centre.

Once Virgil and Gordon had left Two, Scott contacted them and suggested that Gordon swapped with him once they reached him. Gordon agreed immediately and arrived at Mobile Control with a grateful look on his face. It hadn't been all that long before that he had got himself into trouble during a rescue involving a collapsed mine. The aquanaut had successfully wriggled his way through almost half a mile of narrow, winding tunnels and was within two hundred metres of the last four trapped miners when his back had suddenly gone into spasm and then locked up. Scott had been forced to abandon Mobile Control in order to help Virgil come up with a different way to get the miners out safely and with the aid of heavy-duty cutting torches and a lot of brute force, the four grateful men had eventually been delivered back to the surface in a dirty-but-healthy state. Virgil had then taken the Mole and destroyed the area that the men had been trapped in and manoeuvred the large, yellow digging machine up to the spot where Gordon had become trapped. With a lot of gentle manipulation and more than a little cussing, Scott eventually managed to get Gordon onto a back board and in through the side door of the Mole. The three men had then returned to Tracy Island with a new item to add to the list of things that Gordon could no longer be permitted to do.

Scott had realised, almost as soon as he'd taken off, that Jeff hadn't thought through who he'd sent on the mission particularly well. In the confusion of Virgil, Alan and Tin-Tin's dirtiness it had slipped Jeff's mind that Gordon and caves were now a no-go area. Scott didn't know what Virgil, Alan and Tin-Tin were up to during the times that they were 'missing' from the house but he had realised that whatever it was, it was important to the three of them and that he, as eldest, was obviously not going to be made party to it. He didn't want to be the one to cause them to not be able to continue so he waited until Two was far enough away from the island not to be recalled and then radioed back to John with the idea of putting Gordon in charge of Mobile Control. John relayed the message to Jeff who became frustrated at himself for overlooking Gordon's problem and then agreed with Scott that he should accompany Virgil down into the cave.

~#~

With Gordon manning Mobile Control, Scott and Virgil set off into the cave on the hoverbikes. The plan was to go as far as they could by bike and then continue on foot carrying their first aid gear, beacons, lights and tracers. Both Scott and Virgil also carried a collapsible stretcher apiece, made of a very lightweight but sturdy compound of Brains' design.

Scott started to pick up signs of life on his hand held detector just before he and Virgil reached the point where they were going to have to abandon the hoverbikes. They left the bikes and carefully picked their way towards the confused mass of life-signs that were huddled together and barely moving.

The reason for the almost complete lack of movement became clear when Scott and Virgil met up with the party of cavers. One of their party had slipped down a rocky incline and had knocked themselves out on a large boulder near the bottom of the slope. Their guide had set up ropes and had clambered down to where the injured man was lying. He had given remedial first aid at the site of the accident and had then attempted to climb back to the rest of their party with the man strapped to his back. Something had gone wrong, either with the ropes, the fixings or the guide himself and the two men had plummeted back down the slope and due to their combined weight, had carried on further down than the injured man had originally fallen. The guide's pack had been flung clear of the men and had disappeared over a ledge where it was carried away by an underwater stream, never to be seen again.

The remaining eight members of the group had, with a lot of ingenuity and a great deal of luck, managed to get the two unconscious men up the incline and back up onto the path. They had tied their jackets together into makeshift stretchers and between them they were slowly carrying the pair back up out of the cave.

Scott and Virgil made short work of getting the injured men loaded onto the stretchers that they'd brought. They then took the head of a stretcher each which left the cavers to take turns in carrying the other end. With two strong, fresh people carrying proper stretchers the group made good time and were soon heading towards the hot Mexican sunshine.

Gordon had arranged for an ambulance to meet the group near to the mouth of the cave and the two injured men were quickly loaded on board and driven away. The rest of the group went back into the visitor centre to be checked over and the young man and the only woman in the caving party reluctantly handed back the hoverbikes that they had ridden out of the cave.

~#~

The Park Service rangers thanked Scott, Virgil and Gordon and the three men went on their way. Scott reported back to base and then set about packing up Mobile Control while Gordon and Virgil rode the hoverbikes, loaded up with the rest of the equipment, back across to Thunderbird 2.

Scott said farewell to the staff and cavers in the visitor centre and then sat in the cockpit of Thunderbird 1 until Virgil reported that he and Gordon were ready to leave. The two craft travelled home together until Scott shot ahead just before they reached the island so that he could have One down, inside her hangar and well out of Virgil's way by the time Thunderbird 2 came in to land.

~#~

Scott was cuddling Jacob and speaking quietly with John and Jeff by the time Virgil and Gordon wandered in after running through the post-flight checks on Thunderbird 2. He looked up and grinned when Jacob squealed loudly and jiggled up and down as soon as he caught sight of Gordon. "You've got yourself a fan, Gords," he laughed. "Here, you might as well have him. He's not going to be happy with me while you're around."

Gordon clapped his hands together and then held them out so Scott could pass Jacob over to him. John looked across to Jeff and rolled his eyes. "Should we be worried about what mischief those two are going to be getting up to in a couple of years?" he whispered with a grin.

Jeff smiled back and shuddered. "Don't even joke about it," he replied. "Not when you know there's a damn fine chance it's going to come back and bite you when you least expect it. If he's going to learn from the best, and maybe even work with him, then we're going to be in for one hell of a fine old time."

John chuckled and then turned to watch Gordon and Jacob for a few seconds before Jeff called the room into order and asked for a run through of the rescue. He started by apologising to Gordon for sending him in the first place and then asked Scott to take over the discussion from the point where he landed by the visitor centre.

~#~

Scott and Virgil had reached the point in the debrief where the two injured men had been loaded into the ambulance when Jacob suddenly started wriggling around in Gordon's arms. The wriggling was followed by grumbling and Gordon sniffed loudly and then raised his eyebrows towards John in a meaningful way.

John moved out from behind the desk and gently removed his son from Gordon's arms. "Sorry guys," he murmured. "I guess I'll be back shortly. Carry on without me if you wish, I think we're pretty much done, anyway."

Jeff nodded and patted John on the back as he passed by. "Take your time, son. The little guy's been very good in here today. You should be proud."

John's head bobbed slightly as he carried Jacob from the room. Jeff turned to Scott and frowned slightly at the concerned look on his eldest son's face. "He's doing alright, Scott," he said quietly. "Didn't want me to leave him on the desk on his own but he needn't have worried. I know that today's rescue was about as straightforward as they come but even so, he didn't panic, he kept his head and you all came home safe. What more could we ask for out of the odd situation that we've found ourselves in?"

Scott smiled tightly and looked over to where Gordon had slumped down onto one of the sofas. "I know," he replied. "It's just…all a bit up in the air at the moment, isn't it?"

Jeff nodded and followed his gaze. "It certainly is," he agreed. "Are you OK down there, Gordon?"

Gordon frowned slightly as he looked up from his spot on the sofa. "I…um…are you thinking of stepping down and letting Johnny fly the desk? If you are then where does that leave us where Five is concerned? Brains can't be up there all the time or we're going to end up with little or no working equipment. Virgil can't be expected to fix everything as well as flying Two for the bulk of the missions that we're called out on. I know that Tin-Tin's a dab hand at the mechanics of the machines but let's face it, she's not Brains. He designed them all and he built virtually everything too so he's the one who understands how best to repair them when I…we break them. Alan's already raised his worries about Tin-Tin herself going up to Five as it'll eat into their already-brief time together. Can…can I…we…I ask what you're planning, Father, while John's out of earshot. I think it's clear to everyone that he won't be going back up there."

Jeff rolled his shoulders uncomfortably and then leant heavily against the edge of his desk. "I'm sorry, I think we all tend to forget how sensitive to change you two youngsters really are. I had a very similar conversation with Alan this morning so I suppose it's only fair that I tell the two of you…" Jeff paused and waved his hands between Gordon and Virgil. "…roughly the same thing. In answer to your first question, Gordon, no, I'm not planning on stepping down. Not any time soon at least. If Mother's anything to go by then I've got a good few years left in me yet. As time goes on…" Jeff stopped and breathed deeply. "…well, I guess that's something that we'll review over time. I put John on the desk today, purely and simply, because he was lost. You three were on your way to Mexico, Alan and Tin-Tin had disappeared back down to whatever they're doing with Virgil and John was, quite literally, left holding the baby. I gave him the desk, purely and simply, so that he could feel useful. Truthfully though, I'm not entirely sure how things are going to work in the future. I told Alan that I wasn't going to do, say or decide anything until I'd spoken to John and that I didn't intend to speak to him for at least a couple of days to make sure he'd got his head round everything that's been going on recently. Brains has assured me that he's fine where he is for the time being and apart from not being able to physically build the machines from up there he is still working on some designs and improvements using the equipment up on Five. Personally I don't believe John will be going back up to Five for more than anything but the shortest of trips. Even if he currently thinks he will be then I guarantee when it comes to the crunch, he won't go. I…" After seeing Vigil's arm twitch upwards for the third time, Jeff had finally had enough. "Virgil, whatever is the matter?"

Virgil blushed and tucked his errant hand in his pocket before he could try and raise it again. "I…um…a couple of days? How definite it that? Are we talking a couple as in two or maybe several as in three or four?"

Jeff blinked slowly and then looked between the three boys. "A couple as in an indefinite number ranging from two and maybe up to seven or eight dependant on John's moods and the appropriate opportunity arising in which to speak to him. Why?"

"Um," Virgil replied hesitantly. "…it's just…could you extend that to maybe a number between three and four up to whenever you manage to speak to him?"

Jeff tilted his head to one side as he studied Virgil's suddenly-nervous demeanour. "Does this have something to do with whatever you, Alan and Tin-Tin are doing down in the silos?"

Virgil bit down hard on his bottom lip and nodded. "Yes, sir, it does. It's something that will benefit the island as a whole but it will have the biggest impact on John. I…we…you just need to give us a few more days."

"Am I to assume, by that, that you're not going to fill us in on exactly what you're up to down there?" Jeff asked quietly and was unsurprised when Virgil shook his head.

"No, sir, I'd rather not." Virgil's voice had dropped to barely a whisper. "Just, please, know that what we're doing is for the…um…greater good, for want of a better expression. And please, please, give us the time we've asked for. It will be worth it, I promise."

Jeff locked eyes with Scott who shrugged. "OK, Virgil. You can have four days. I reckon John may start getting antsy by then anyway. Will that do you?"

Virgil nodded and subconsciously looked towards the door. Jeff chuckled and waved him away. "If you want to go, then just go. As John rightly said, we're about done here anyway."

Virgil let out a relieved breath and shot from the room which left Jeff to turn to Gordon. "Gords? Did that strange and oddly broken reply adequately answer your question? At least until we uncover, in four days time, whatever it is that Virgil and the others are up to?"

Gordon rolled his eyes and grinned. "I guess it'll have to," he replied. "…and for the record, I'm glad you're going to be sticking around for a bit longer."

It was Jeff's turn to roll his eyes this time and he leant across and ruffled Gordon's hair. "I'm glad that you're glad, now get out of here and let Scott and I finish up with anything that's left to debrief."

Gordon grinned again and sprang to his feet. He scurried out of the room and met John and Jacob coming back the other way. "Hey you two, come out to the pool with me. There's only Dad and Scott left in there now. Come outsiiiiiide."


	80. Chapter 80

~#~ (Chapter 80)

Over the next few days the household settled into some sort of routine. Jeff, John, Jacob and Scott would be up at the crack of dawn, Gordon would follow shortly afterwards and throw himself in the pool for his usual morning workout. Alan, Virgil and Tin -Tin would appear for breakfast and then disappear almost immediately afterwards. They would emerge from the cavernous bowels of the island for their midday meal and then again for dinner. After dinner the trio would spend the evening with the rest of the family until it was time for everyone to go to bed.

On the evening of the third day Jeff was thinking about heading to bed when he noticed Virgil hovering near to the door of his office. "Virgil, is everything alright?" he asked quietly. "Do you need to speak to me?"

Virgil nodded and then looked around as if he wanted to make sure that no one could overhear what he was going to say.

Jeff rolled his eyes. "Shall we step inside?" he suggested. "That way John can't possibly hear whatever it is you have to say?"

Virgil frowned slightly and gave his father an odd look before pushing the door to the office open and stepping inside. "How did you know what I'm going to say has anything to do with John," he asked once Jeff had followed him into the room and closed the door. "I could have needed to speak to you about any number of things."

Jeff patted Virgil's shoulder and then moved around to his usual spot behind the desk. "These days, " he murmured, "…anything vaguely shifty, nervous or sneaky looking usually has something to do with not upsetting John, not disturbing John or not allowing John to realise that something is going on somewhere deep beneath the surface of the island. How he hasn't noticed that the three of you are missing for most of every day is beyond me."

"He probably has," Virgil pointed out as he flopped down into the chair opposite his father. "…but he either thinks that we're doing maintenance down there or he's being polite enough not to question what we're up to. Anyway, what I wanted to say was that we're about finished now but it would be good if you could keep John out of the way until maybe…lunchtime tomorrow. After we've all eaten we...Alan, Tin-Tin and myself can take you, John, Scott, Gordon and I guess probably Grandma, down to show you what we've been working on. We just need tomorrow morning to check everything over and to give it all a final run-through...if that's alright with you?"

Jeff smiled and then rolled his eyes again. "Bearing in mind that you've chosen not to let me in on what you're doing down there, I don't have much choice but to agree, now do I? If you agree to be finished by lunchtime tomorrow then I'll agree to keep John out of your hair until then. Deal?"

"Deal," Virgil replied with a smile and he jumped up and held his hand out to Jeff who grinned as he reached out and shook it. "It's been good doing business with you, Mr Tracy," he said cheekily. "...and I hope we can work together again soon."

With that said, Virgil shot out of the office door which left Jeff sitting behind his desk with a slightly confused look on his face. Just what were Virgil, Alan and Tin-Tin up to that had put Virgil in such an unusually ebullient mood?

~#~

Jeff noticed with amusement that Virgil, Alan and Tin-Tin were attending lunch looking much more clean and presentable than they had for the previous few days. "Everything alright, Virgil," he asked as he sat down. "Alan? Tin-Tin, you both doing OK?"

Virgil grinned across the table and nodded, knowing exactly what his father was asking. "Yes, Father. The three of us have had a very productive morning despite spending most of it trying to track down a system glitch that made itself evident just after breakfast."

John looked over at this. "A computer system glitch?" he asked. "If you were struggling then you could have called me. I wouldn't have minded looking it over for you."

Alan's eyes opened and he looked from John to Virgil in something akin to panic. Tin-Tin rested her hand on his arm and turned to John. "We discussed that, John. If we hadn't found it by the time we came up for lunch then we probably would have asked you about it. Luckily though we didn't need to disturb you because we tracked down the problem ourselves."

Alan grinned and patted the hand which Tin-Tin still had hold of him with. "Tin-Tin means that _she_ tracked the problem down. I think Virgil and I were about ready to start tearing things apart but Tin-Tin insisted that she could find and sort the trouble without…how did you put it, Honey? Oh yes, without resorting to drastic measures that would have probably undone days worth of work."

Tin-Tin smiled and squeezed his arm. "Well it would have done," she said quietly. "You boys automatically opt for the most destructive solution to a problem that just needs a little time and a bit of finesse. Yes it may have taken the best part of three hours to find the problem but it took just a few moments to fix and now it's all over and done with. The pair of you would have still had to rebuild or reassemble everything you had ripped out and we probably wouldn't have had time to finish it before coming up here for to eat."

"But you did," Gordon clarified. "And we're all here so can we please eat? I'm famished."

John leant backwards on his chair so he could look behind Jacob and cocked an eyebrow at Gordon. "How can you possibly be hungry? You ate more than Scott at breakfast and you had a massive slab of cake when Jacob had his mid-morning snack."

Gordon shrugged. "I don't know. I just know I'm hungry and we're having Kyrano's fish curry followed by Grandma's apple pie and…I'm just hungry, _OK_?"

John opened his mouth to reply, only to close it when Kyrano leant over and placed a plate, piled high with food, in front of Gordon. Another plate, smaller and made of plastic, followed a moment later and was put on the table just in front of Jacob's high chair. Everyone had the fish curry except for John, Jacob and Ruth who had poached fish, rice and a selection of fresh vegetables. Ruth tended to avoid eating too many spices as they exacerbated her heartburn and John had already spoken to her, Kyrano and Onaha about keeping Jacob's diet as simple as possible while he was settling into life on the island. John himself had a well known fondness for Kyrano's poached fish dishes so the gentle Malaysian man had, without asking, swapped him off the curry and onto the plainer, simpler meal so that he matched both his son and his grandmother.

~#~

Jeff cleared his throat once it became obvious that everyone was fast approaching the end of their dessert.

"Everyone, I need to stop you before you disappear off to whatever you have planned for this afternoon. Virgil, as you may or may not have noticed, along with Alan and Tin-Tin have been mostly missing from the house for the past few days. Now, I can't tell you what they've been up to because I'm not party to that information but I am aware that they have used up the time that they requested I give them and I believe, from the conversation going on when we sat down, that they have finished whatever it was they were doing. Virgil, Alan, would one of you like to say something?"

Virgil leant forwards and looked down the table at Alan who grinned at him but remained silent. "Yes, sir," he said quietly. "You're right in assuming that we have pretty much completed what we were doing. There are a few, minor finishing touches that will have to be attended to over the coming weeks, mainly cosmetic things that we don't have the parts for. You…you'll see what I mean when we show you. If everyone's done with eating and is willing to come with us then we'll show you where we've been for the past few days and what we've been doing. It will become clear very quickly why we've been doing it and I think…or at least I hope, that the idea will be well received." Virgil briefly shot John a worried look but turned away when he realised that John was watching him. "Look, I don't think we'll all fit in the monorail in one trip. Father, could Alan and Tin-Tin be excused so that they can get going, it's only fair that we're all there when…um…when we…uh…" Virgil waved his hand helplessly in the direction of the large patio doors.

Jeff frowned and then nodded. "Sure," he agreed. "If the pair of you are finished then by all mean, go. Ask Kyrano to bring coffee in for everyone else on your way past and you can have the time it takes us to drink it as your head start on the rest of us."

Alan slipped out of his chair and with a cheeky grin in the direction of his father, he grabbed Tin-Tin's hand and pulled her from the room.

Jeff rolled his eyes. "I swear that boy gets worse," he said with a chuckle. "…but at least he gives Tin-Tin a little warning before pulling her from the room, unlike someone we could mention." He looked pointedly at Virgil who looked bashfully down at the table top for a moment before he was saved by Onaha coming into the room to clear the table.

"The coffee will be along shortly," she announced. "…along with some juice for Master Jacob. Will you be needing anything else?"

Jeff shook his head and smiled, noting that Virgil had made his escape while everyone's attention had been on Onaha. "No, thank you. Just the coffee will be fine." He turned to look down the still occupied side of the table. "I take it that none of you are any the wiser as to what we're going to see in a few minutes time? Or even exactly where we're going to be shown it? Assuming that Virgil does come back and get us, of course?"

Gordon shrugged and looked at John who shook his head. "I thought it safer not to pry," he admitted. "If they had wanted us to know they'd have told us. I didn't ask because they didn't tell...um, probably not the best way to explain myself but you know what I mean, anyway."

Scott snorted and then looked at Jeff. "No idea," he said. "I thought about using the trackers in their watches to find out where they were but that seemed a little untrusting. Like John, I assumed that they'd tell us when they were good and ready. As Gordon said the other day, this is Virgil we're talking about. If it had been, oh I don't know, say Gordon and Alan? If it had been those two then maybe I'd have made a point of finding out what the heck they were up to. Virgil's though?" Scott paused and looked around to check that Virgil hadn't come back in with out him noticing. "Virgil's reliable, more or less completely dependable and hasn't had one of his…" Scott looked towards the door again. "…squiffy turns in almost a year. If he wants to do something covert and let only Alan and Tin-Tin in on it, then I say let him."

"And that's exactly what I did," Jeff pointed out with a chuckle and then he caught a glimpse of movement through the open doorway. "Watch it," he murmured. "Incoming."

Scott looked up and managed a cheery "Hey, Virg," before Kyrano followed his brother into the room with the coffees.

~#~

Virgil sent Alan a signal to warn him and Tin-Tin that everyone was on their way to meet them. He then needlessly led the way to the monorail system and pressed the button which would take them to Thunderbird 3's launch bay.

John gave a long-suffering sigh at the sight of the huge red rocket and then frowned as Virgil led them across the cavernous room and through a small door marked 'Blast door. Emergency use only'. "Um, Virg," he asked cautiously. "Are you sure we're going the right way? There's nothing through those doors apart from the emergency bunkers and the ducting for Three's exhaust gasses."

Virgil chuckled quietly to himself. "That's what used to be down here, John. I promise I'll get round to changing the sign at some point," he replied. "…but for now it can be added to the list of cosmetic jobs that need doing. Grandma, would you please take someone's arm, the steps are a bit steep from here on in."

Ruth grumbled that she wasn't so old and infirm that she 'couldn't handle a few stairs' and Virgil smiled when he noticed that she allowed Jeff to link arms and help her anyway.

Alan and Tin-Tin were at the bottom of the stairs, talking quietly to one another in front of another door that was proclaiming itself to be a 'Blast door'.

Alan stepped forwards as the group approached. "Hi guys, hi Grandma," he said quietly. He looked at Virgil and nodded knowingly.

Virgil smiled in return and nodded back. "OK," he said, turning so his back was against the door. "All of you, maybe with the exception of yourself, Grandma, know that this was a pretty much disused area. As you rightly said, John, there are the emergency bunkers and the ducting chambers, other than that there was just a whole heap of nothing. That space gave me an idea which I discussed with Brains who, it turned out, had been thinking along the same lines, although he hadn't come up with a suitable location in which to put his idea into practice."

Gordon snorted. "Geez Virg, it's like you're running for Congress or something. Just show us what's behind the door. Please?"

Scott leaned over and gently slapped the back of Gordon's head. "Let him say his piece," he hissed. "Whatever this is, it's big, so button it."

Gordon fell silent and sidled close up against John's side. Virgil watched him and shrugged. "Anyway, Brains thought here was as good a place as any to build…um…what we wanted to build. I started doing what I could down here and he helped by doing what he could from up on Five." Virgil was watching John as he spoke and noticed the wistful look that came over his brother's face at the mention of his beloved space station, he didn't miss the sadness and confusion that filled the blonde's eyes a moment later. "It soon became apparent that we weren't going to be able to complete the project alone and we were in discussion as to who to bring in to help us when Alan sort of…um…blackmailed his way into it. I think you can pretty much guess when I roped Tin-Tin into helping us and…well…" Virgil stopped and shrugged.

"You've been down here ever since," Jeff finished with a smile.

Virgil nodded. "That's right. Now I don't know how best to do this. My heart says to let you in first, John because this is most relevant to you. My head though, says that you'd be better off going in with Dad, or maybe Scott but certainly not with…um…everyone. I…er…I'm sorry, I guess I hadn't really thought this bit through."

Scott stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder. "Virg," he said softly. "This was your idea, even if Alan and Tin-Tin helped you to carry it to fruition so if John's going in with anyone then it should be you. Right? John? Father?"

Jeff nodded approvingly. "Right," he agreed. "…and when you give us the go ahead we'll follow you in. Alright?"

Virgil grinned and nodded. "Great," he murmured. "That way I get to see his reaction."

John looked at him with a puzzled look on his face. "OK, well in that case, I…um…hope I give you the response that you're looking for. I take it I can take Jacob in with me?"

Virgil shrugged, "I don't see why not," he replied and then he turned and rested his hand on the door handle. "Oh yeah, one thing before we go in…don't look up. The ceilings are another of the non-essential cosmetic jobs that haven't been finished yet."

John nodded vaguely so Virgil, in reply, leant against the door handle and swung the big, heavy door inwards.

~#~

The moment the door was open a barrage of sound came through from the room beyond. Virgil watched John's expression pass from confusion to recognition and then back to confusion again before the blonde falteringly stepped through the door.

Virgil stood off to one side and watched as John walked into the centre of the room and looked around in sheer disbelief. He turned slowly around, taking in the whole room and then walked over to Virgil and pulled him into a tight hug.

The moment was broken, after just a few seconds, by Jacob who squealed loudly in protest at being squashed between the two men. The brothers smiled broadly at the indignant look on the little boy's face and then John walked back across the room and struggled to one-handedly pull the door back open.

"Someone help," he hissed once he'd got the door partway open. "This thing's damn heavy."

Scott, who had been hovering nearest to the door, stuck his boot into the gap that John had made and then leant against it to push the door the rest of the way open. He took a single step into the room and stopped dead. "Holy sh…Ow. Dad, what the…?"

He had been cut off mid-word when Jeff, who had followed him through the door, cuffed him across the back of his head. "Not that I'm sure the sentiment isn't required," his father hissed quietly. "…but you need to remember that Grandma is not far behind me and you'd do well to recall that you'll never be too old to have her wash your mouth out with soap. Now, please, get out of the doorway."

Jeff gave Scott a gentle shove and stepped into the room just behind him. He had a similar reaction to that of his oldest son when he caught sight of the room they were entering. "What?" he murmured. "When? How have the three of you got all this done in just under three days?"

Gordon was next through the door, he pushed past Jeff and shot into the middle of the room where he stood with his mouth hanging open. "Virgil," he said quietly. "You are a genius."

Virgil flushed red and then turned towards the door where Alan was ushering Ruth and Tin-Tin through in front of him.

Ruth winced stopped beside her son and winced. "Whatever is that dreadful noise?" she asked loudly.

Jeff opened his mouth to reply but John beat him to it. He stepped up to Ruth, linked arms with her and gently pulled her over to a large red chair that was sitting in front of the bank of computers that was lining the curved wall at one side of the room. He pushed her into the chair and put Jacob down on her lap before turning slightly and encompassing the room with a wave of his arm. "That 'dreadful noise' is what's missing from my life every time I'm down here on the island. It's the sound of messages from all around the globe and if…" He stopped, grinned and then looked around until he found Virgil. "I assume it's all fully functional?"

Virgil nodded slowly so he turned fully around and adjusted several of the sliders on the panel in front of him. The noise level dropped considerably until, eventually, a single conversation, being spoken in French, could be heard. "They're in Belgium, Grandma. Now just wait a moment." He changed the settings again and this time a gruff Russian-sounding voice sounded over the speakers. "Latvia," he announced, then he turned all the switches and sliders back to their original starting places and turned the sound down to a barely noticeable volume. He spun back round to face the centre of the room and gently rested his backside against the panel behind him. "Gordon's right, you know, Virgil; you really are a genius. This hasn't all been done in three days though, has it? You've must have been working on it for weeks."

Virgil shrugged self-consciously and then bobbed his head. "Something like that," he replied quietly. "It wasn't just me though, Brains has done a lot as well. I couldn't have done it if he wasn't…um…where he is. He should be waiting for you, by the way. I think you can probably work out how to get hold of him." Virgil shrugged again and nodded towards the wall of computers.

John stood up properly and turned, once again, back to the control panels. A smile came over his face as he gently pressed a large green button. "Tracy Island calling Thunderbird 5," he called. "Are you there Brains?"

~#~

Almost immediately the bespectacled face of Brains appeared in a small screen that sat level with John's chest. The blonde bent his head slightly and grinned. "Good afternoon, Brains," he said with a chuckle. "It seems that you and my most artistic brother have been very busy over the past few weeks. It's brilliant and I love it. Thank you."

Brains flushed almost as red as Virgil had a few minutes before. "Th-th-thank you," he stuttered. "We-we-we were a little w-w-worried that it would upset y-you b-b-but we hoped that you-you would take it in-in-in the manner that you see-see-seem to have."

John nodded. "It was a shock, I grant you that, but it was a good shock, not a bad one. The pair of you, along with Alan and Tin-Tin of course, have worked so hard on this and I'm just sorry that I will probably never manage to repay the four of you."

Brains shook his head. "We-we didn't do it for pay-pay-payment," he replied. "Just-just so that you and your-your-your son can be happy and to-together. Basically I re-re-really just need to say, John T-T-Tracy, we-welcome aboard Th-Thunderbird Five b-b-B."


	81. Chapter 81

~#~ (Chapter 81)

Jacob woke up at 2.45 the next morning. He lay in the cot and chewed happily on the leg of his teddy bear for several minutes until his contented mumblings eventually disturbed his father.

John swung his legs over the side of his bed and peered down into the cot. "Hey there, little guy," he murmured. "What are you doing awake? It's the middle of the night and you should be asleep."

Jacob pulled the bear's leg from his mouth and gave his father a toothy smile. John grinned in reply and then leant down and gently lifted Jacob, his bear and one of the blankets up out of the cot and onto his knee. "You're a rascal," he said with a smile as he gave Jacob a hug. "...but you've got to go back to sleep. Let's get a bottle warmed up and then we'll see about getting you settled again."

John slipped a bottle into the warmer and sat, cuddling Jacob while the milk was heated to a suitable temperature. Once the bottle was ready he sat up near the head of his bed, snuggled Jacob up in the blanket and then offered it to him.

Jacob opened his mouth for the teat and suckled quietly for several minutes before suddenly releasing his grip on the teat with a loud 'pop'. He then lay placidly in John's arms and stared up at him with big, wide eyes.

John smiled back at him and gently shook his head. "You were supposed to go back to sleep," he said softly. "...but you're not looking even the slightest bit sleepy at the moment."

Jacob cooed gently and then reached one of his hands up towards John's face. John leant forwards and let Jacob pat his nose for a moment before he adjusted his hold on the little boy so he could lean down and snuggle his face against his son's soft warm body.

Jacob giggled quietly and tugged gently on the errant lock of hair at the front of John's head. John gently uncurled the little boy's hand and looked down at him with a look of fond exasperation on his face. "I suppose I asked for that," he said quietly. "...but I'd rather you didn't pull it out. I happen to like my hair like it is, albeit I would agree that it's a little long at the moment and is way overdue for a trim. Now, are you going to go back to bed or are we going to have to give up with that idea and go for a walk?"

Jacob cooed again and pulled his hand out of John's and waved it around. John chuckled and tucked the hand back inside Jacob's blanket. "OK, OK," he replied. "I get the idea. No more sleep for the moment. You're sure about that?" Jacob grinned broadly as John chatted away to him. "OK then, I'm going to change you and then we'll go for a walk. You've got to be quiet though or we'll disturb Granddad and Uncle Scott on the way past."

~#~

As it was, John managed to change Jacob with very little fuss and then carried him, his blanket and the bear out into the house without disturbing anyone. He slid the door to the bedroom corridor closed behind him and let out a deep breath. "Good boy," he whispered to Jacob. "We made it. Now where do you want to go?"

John ambled aimlessly round the house with Jacob in his arms and then took him down the outside steps, around the pool and down to the quiet, and almost completely dark, beach. The low-level lighting which John had switched on around the pool barely encroached onto the sand so he sat on the bottom step and rested Jacob on the floor between his feet.

The little boy patted at the cool, dry sand and sunk his fingers deep into it before pulling them out again and watching as the sand fell out of his hand and onto his leg. This went on for several minutes with John watching in amusement until it suddenly dawned on Jacob that the sand may be good to eat.

John managed to intercept the first handful as it approached Jacob's mouth and he quickly scooped up the little boy before he could try again. "OK," he said quietly. "I think that's probably enough fresh air for tonight. Let's go back inside."

~#~

John carried Jacob back towards the house and decided that the little boy was still far too awake for him to even contemplate trying to go back to bed. He wandered through the house and found himself heading down into the silos towards the newly christened Thunderbird 5b. He pushed the blast door open and smiled gently as he was greeted the quiet burble of messages being relayed down from the original Thunderbird 5.

Jacob, despite having been awake and relatively lively just a few minutes before hand, snuggled down against his father's chest and closed his eyes. John patted his back softly and then stepped sideways to drop the blanket in an unobtrusive corner of the room. He padded over to the large, red control chair and slid himself up into its cushioned grip before tilting it backwards until Jacob was supported against his chest without John having to keep too tight a grip on him to stop him sliding downwards.

John sighed deeply and then sat and let the sound of global communications wash over him. The family, with the possible exception of Alan, would never understand how John could relax with so much background noise going on around him. John, however, had always found himself missing the babbling noise whenever he was on Earth and a gentle smile spread across his face as he realised that, from now on, he would no longer have to choose between the gentle hubbub of Five and the calm, tranquil sound of the sea on Tracy Island.

A ghost of the smile remained on John's face as he sat in the chair with Jacob sleeping peacefully against his chest. After a few minutes his eyelids began to grow heavy and John became aware that a drowsy feeling was permeating throughout his body. He decided that he was far too comfortable and relaxed to do anything about it and after another couple of minutes he allowed his eyes to slide fully closed.

~#~

The next thing John was aware of was a gentle pressure on his knee. He automatically moved to wrap his arms around Jacob, only to jump when his hand collided with something large and solid.

He heard a chuckle and the pressure on his knee increased. "He's fine, Johnny," Scott's voice sounded from nearby. "Just open your eyes if you don't believe me."

John cracked open one eye to find Scott crouched in front of him with one hand on John's knee and the other hand resting against Jacob's back. John opened his other eye and looked up at his brother in confusion.

"I was worried that you'd wake with a start and dislodge him," Scott explained. "You've given us all one hell of a scare already this morning. Father and I weren't worried at first, we just assumed you were having a lie in but then Gordon sneaked in to check on you and came out yelling that you'd gone. Oh..." Scott let go of Jacob and used the hand on John's knee to push himself upright. Once standing he rummaged in the pocket of his trousers and pulled out John's watch. "Put that on," he said firmly. "When Gordon announced that you were missing, Father tried to put his and Alan's minds at rest by tracking you with the system. Apparently 'you' were found on the floor behind your bedside cabinet and after that both Gordon and Alan went kind of nuts. God knows where they thought you'd gone but when they went outside Gordon discovered the poolside lights were on and Alan found this..." Scott picked Jacob's bear off the floor beside the chair and wiggled it in front of John. "...on the sand at the bottom of the steps. Alan was convinced that you'd taken Jacob and walked into the sea during the night and he wound Gordon up so much that he was talking about getting Four out to try and find you. Father ended up dragging them both into the office to try and calm them down and while they were out of the way, Virg had the idea to get Brains to locate you by doing a life-signs sweep of the island. It didn't pick you up completely, thanks to a certain big, red rocket perched not all that far above your head but it told us enough to make an educated guess as to where you were."

John looked vaguely guilty as he carefully strapped the watch back to his arm. "I guess I owe everyone an apology," he murmured. "I only meant to sit down for a few minutes to let this one settle properly. I was going to go back to bed once he was completely asleep. What time is it?"

Scott snorted and tapped the watch that John had just put on. "Let's just say that you've pretty much missed breakfast. How long have you been down here anyway?"

John's eyebrows shot up when he glanced at the face of his watch. "No way," he said. "I have not been asleep in here for nearly six hours. There's no way I've been asleep for that long."

Scott leaned over and patted him on the shoulder. "If you got in here somewhere just past four o'clock then you must have slept for that long. Now can you see why we were starting to worry?"

"Yes," John nodded and then both men smiled when Jacob suddenly lifted his head up from John's chest and looked around.

"Hey there, you," Scott said softly. "You going to come with me for a minute so your Daddy can sort himself out. I'm guessing he's going to be stiff from sleeping in a chair with a big lump like you on his chest."

John smiled and passed Jacob up to Scott. He then stretched climbed to his feet and stretched his hands up way above his head. "Don't knock the chair until you've tried it, Flyboy," he retorted with a grin. "I've spent many a night in that chair while you've been out and about and I can safely say that its replacement was never quite as comfortable. I always hoped that Virgil would swap it back again once he'd fixed the problem with the gimbal joint underneath it but for some reason he never did. I guess he must have sorted the joint out and then decided that there was no point changing them over again when there was nothing wrong with the chair I had." John stopped and shook his head. "Sorry, I'm waffling," he added with a grin. "...and I'm also really hungry. What do you think to our chances of getting something to eat even though breakfast was over ages ago? Oh, and do Alan, Gordon and Dad know that I've been 'found'?"

Scott grinned and handed Jacob back to John. "Yes," he replied. "I interrupted the chaos in the office to tell them that we'd worked out where you were and that I was coming down here to get you. I'm not too sure where Virg went after that, I kind of lost track of him but Gordon definitely said something about going to do some checks on the sensors on Four so I reckon they're probably together. Alan looked like he hadn't had enough sleep so I'd imagine he will have gone back to bed by the time we get up into the house. If you take this one with you..." Scott gently poked Jacob's stomach and made him giggle. "...then you can probably sweet-talk either Grandma or Onaha into making breakfast for the pair of you. I'll join you in a couple of minutes and then I'll feed Titch so you can get your own food eaten before it goes cold. Deal?"

John grinned and nodded. "Sounds good to me. I'll have a coffee waiting for you when you appear."


	82. Chapter 82

~#~ (Chapter 82)

Gordon wandered into the dining room as John, Scott and Jacob were finishing up with their belated breakfast. He stalked over to where John was sitting and wrapped his arms around his brother's neck. "Please don't do that again," he whispered. "I didn't know what to think when I found your room empty...and then Alan found the bear...and...there was the beach...and the sea...and..."

John looked worriedly down the table at Scott and then reached up to return Gordon's hug. "It's alright, Gordy," he murmured. "I'm sorry if I scared you, that certainly wasn't the intention. Jacob just got up really early so we went for a walk and then we both ended up falling asleep down in 5b. I'm alright, honest, and so is Jacob, see?"

Scott had given Jacob a spoon to divert his hands away from trying to grab the spoon that Scott was trying to feed him with. The little boy noticed Gordon looking over at him and bashed the spoon noisily against the tray on his high chair. Unfortunately the third downward swipe of his arm was slightly further over than the first two and the end of his spoon collided with the edge of his discarded porridge dish and sent it plummeting towards the floor.

Scott let out a yelp and jumped to his feet as the remains of Jacob's soggy, milky breakfast plastered itself liberally down one leg of his trousers. Jacob burst into a fit of giggles which in turn made Gordon chuckle.

John looked up at Scott with a grin. Scott stood and looked back and forth between Jacob and Gordon for a moment and then smiled in reply. Jacob may have been less than eight months old but he had improved Gordon's mood without even realising what he was doing. Gordon looked much happier, albeit he still had one arm wrapped around John, and Scott decided that if a bit of mess on his trousers was all it took to perk up his second-youngest brother up then he would certainly put up with it.

~#~

Everyone dispersed around the island once the table had been cleared and they stayed relatively separate until lunchtime when they gathered back in the dining room once more.

Over lunch, Jeff pointed out that Thunderbird 5b needed stress-testing in preparation for bringing Brains back down to Tracy Island. If Thunderbird 5 was going to remain unmanned for long periods of time then there needed to be no room for doubt about the reliability of 5b. John, Virgil and Alan agreed to contact Brains once the meal was completed so that they could put together a schedule for testing the equipment in the room hidden deep beneath Thunderbird 3.

~#~

The next morning, John left Jacob with Jeff and Ruth and accompanied Alan, Virgil and Tin-Tin down to Thunderbird 5b. The plan was to spend the next three days testing anything and everything that they could think of. Once they were confident that everything was working as well as humanly possible, John and Alan would take Thunderbird 3 up to Thunderbird 5 to retrieve Brains. Neither of the blonde Tracys was particularly looking forward to the trip but the other members of the family had volunteered the pair of them, knowing that both men would need the time to effectively close a chapter of their lives. Never again would either man need to spend long periods of time away from Earth, the island and the people who loved and cared for them. Never again would they need to lie about where they disappeared off to for weeks at a time and never again would the pair have to survive on basic military rations while the rest of the family dined in luxury below them.

Jeff chuckled and extracted his pen from Jacob's hand for the fourth time in as many minutes. The little boy had certainly caused a lot of upheaval in the couple of months since the fateful morning when Jeff had opened the envelope from Hines & Huberts Solicitors. The Tracy patriarch realised that many of the changes which had been made in the past few weeks were ones which should have been put into place years before, particularly the development of Thunderbird 5b. Jeff had never been happy about having to split the family up and send his sons up to Thunderbird 5 but at the time that International Rescue was set up he hadn't had any other options. Jacob's arrival had literally forced Virgil and Brains into coming up with a better solution to the call monitoring issue.

Ruth sat on her rocking chair and watched her son as he lifted Jacob from his lap and rested him over his shoulder. Wherever Jeff's mind was it clearly wasn't fully on the little boy as he stared unseeingly out of the window and swayed gently from side to side. Ruth smiled and then leant forwards and rested her hand on his knee.

Jeff startled slightly and then focussed on his mother's face with a confused look in his eyes. "Mother?" he asked quietly. "What?"

"Penny for your thoughts, Jefferson," she said softly. "You were a million miles away. What were you thinking about?"

Jeff breathed deeply and then smiled when Jacob let out a loud sigh from his resting place against his collar bone. "I was just thinking about what a ridiculously huge, life-changing event this little guy turned out to be and how it took something as big as him for someone in this family to get off their butt and do something about the fact that John and Alan aren't even on the planet with us for a large part of every year. Then I got to thinking that, for the first time in several years, we'll all be together the bulk of the time. We'll be able to relax, eat, sleep and celebrate as a family. Birthdays, Christmases, Thanksgiving and other holidays will once again be whole-family events, rather than having one of the boys ostracised and completely alone, way, way above our heads."

Ruth patted Jeff's knee and leant back in her chair. "True, it's sad that it took something like little Jacob to bring about a solution but truthfully, Jefferson, anyone with half a brain could see that no-one was particularly happy with how things were in relation to the family, the boys, International Rescue and that damn tin can of yours."

Jeff snorted. "Don't hold back on my account, Mother. You always did tell it how it was. I know you've never been happy with Alan going up there so can I assume that you approve of Virgil's idea? Of having Johnny, Alan and this one..." He paused and patted Jacob's back. "...here on the island pretty much all the time. Oh, don't get me wrong, Alan will still be going out on rescues with the others, like he usually does when he's down here but John won't. Jacob's already lost one parent and he won't be losing the other, at least not if I have anything to do with it. John is neither as strong nor as experienced as the others in regards to the rescues or the machines and we'd most likely find ourselves with him, or one of the others, seriously injured or killed if he started going out regularly. I know he could be trained and I'm sure that Scott would see it as a personal challenge to do that training but I'm going to see that it doesn't happen. Thunderbird 5 is effectively down here now so there's no need for John to go out and put himself in danger. If that's sounds like I'm showing some sort of favouritism then I'm sorry but that's how it has to be. John's not a single entity any more, he's a single parent and...well, I don't think I need to say any more."

Ruth shook her head. "You certainly don't, my dear. It all sounds quite reasonable, if you want my opinion. Scott, Virgil and Alan have always made a tight team, as have Scott, Virgil and Gordon on the rescues when Alan's not been around. Just promise me one thing, Jeff."

"I will if I can, Mother," Jeff replied, cocked his head slightly to one side. "You know that."

Ruth smiled and nodded. "I do," she said softly. "It's just...don't let Gordon get pushed out. I know you have a tendency to coddle him slightly because of his history but please, please, Jeff, don't leave him by the wayside because you have Alan here full time and you don't actually _have_ to use him."

Ruth leaned over and patted Jeff's knee again before clambering out of her chair and leaving her son to his thoughts. She wandered into the kitchen, got a bottle out of the fridge for Jacob and then switched on the kettle to make tea for herself and a coffee for Jeff.

~#~

After a quiet but productive morning, John, Alan, Virgil and Tin-Tin returned to the house for lunch. Jeff handed a strangely subdued Jacob back to John who cuddled him closely and then put him in his high chair to be fed. The little boy grizzled and messed around with his food until John eventually gave up and lifted him from the chair to sit on his knee. Jacob promptly snuggled against him and fell asleep.

"He's needed to do that for about the last hour," Ruth told him quietly. "He's been quiet but refused to settle for your father."

John looked up the table at Jeff who shrugged. "I think he was a bit unsettled by your disappearance," he replied. "Or at least it seemed that no-one but you was good enough anyway. Despite the fact that Jacob's fallen asleep on us both your grandmother and I before, he simply wouldn't settle this morning."

John shrugged this time. "He seems content enough now but, Dad, he's going to have to survive without me for a while when Alan and I go to collect Brains. I thought you intended for us to stay overnight and then fly back in the morning?"

"That was the general idea, yes," Jeff agreed. "…and I see no reason to change that. If a certain, small person decides that he can't be without you for more than a few hours then he…and we, will all just have to cope."

John nodded doubtfully. "I hope so," he murmured. "The last thing I want is to think I've abandoned him. He must have wondered where Ros…" John stopped mid-word, looked down at his plate and then gently pushed his fork until it was level with his knife. He blinked several times and then swallowed deeply. "Um. I think I'm going to go and lie this one down in his bed. Can I please be excused?"

Jeff realised that the others had picked up on John's mood and had fallen silent. The normal hubbub around the table was unusually quiet and Jeff nodded gently. "I think that's a good idea, son. I'll ask Kyrano to save you some lunch and you can have it later, that way you can stay and check that he rests peacefully."

John frowned and Jeff initially wondered if he was going to object to basically being told to take some time out. The frown soon disappeared and John quietly clambered to his feet and slowly wandered from the room.

"That was…uncomfortable," Gordon commented once John was out of sight. "Do you think he caught himself out with the sudden mention of Rosie? That is what he was going to say, wasn't it? That Jacob must have wondered what happened to her."

Jeff nodded. "I believe so," he replied quietly. "I don't think he'd really thought about what he was going to say before he actually said it and yes, I think it caught him unawares."

"He's done well," Scott added quietly. "We haven't really had too much upset since we've got back. He's held it together and having Five pretty much down here hasn't done any harm either. It's given him something to occupy his mind and has allowed him to feel useful and like he's still part of the team." Scott raised his hand when Alan opened his mouth to object. "Yes, I know he's always been part of the team but on occasion I know he hasn't seen it that way."


	83. Chapter 83

~#~ (Chapter 83)

John still hadn't reappeared by the time lunch was over so Scott crept quietly into his brother's room to check on him while the rest of the family finished their coffee. He found John asleep, lying fully-clothed on top of his bed covers, with a sleeping Jacob cuddled securely in his arms.

Scott squatted in front of his brother for a moment. He studied John's face and sighed softly when he caught sight of a single dried track of a tear which must have escaped as John fell asleep. He reached out and gently laid his hand on John's head. He rested it there briefly and then clambered to his feet and silently left the room.

~#~

Scott walked back into the dining room and smiled sadly when he realised that everyone had immediately turned around to watch him enter. "I think you need to assume you're doing the bulk of this afternoon's testing without John's help," he said quietly. "They're both asleep in there at the moment and didn't show any signs that they might be waking up any time soon. I'll come and help, if you need an extra body."

A look passed between Alan and Virgil who immediately shook his head. "Thanks for the offer," he replied. "...but the three of us pretty much know the whole room inside out anyway and we know where we're up to with the testing. If John feels up to helping then all well and good, otherwise we'll make do."

Scott frowned slightly as Virgil gently rebuffed his offer of help and Jeff hid his smile behind his cup while he drained the last of his coffee. Scott's offer had been a genuine one but Thunderbird 5b had been Virgil's project from the start and Jeff knew that, try as he might, Scott wouldn't be able to help taking charge if he got involved with it. "Scott," he said quietly. "I'd prefer you to stay up here so that one or the other of us is around when John gets up. Hopefully he'll be alright but...well, you never can tell."

Scott paused for a moment and then shrugged. "OK," he agreed. "I can tell when I'm not wanted. I'll be...um...in my room if anyone needs me. I'll be working on the design of the TI27 jet, if anyone's interested."

Gordon choked on the last of his coffee as Scott padded out of the room. "The pair of you have gone and upset him now," he scolded teasingly. "Shame on you both. Dad, I'm done here. Do you mind if I go? I want to take Four out to test the adjustments that Virgil and I made to the sensors this morning. If everything's gone to plan then I should have an extra six foot or so of clear visibility from the sensors."

Jeff waved him away and then climbed to his feet. "Fine, fine. Let me know when you're ready to go and I'll check we're clear. You, you and you..." he turned and pointed to Alan, Virgil and Tin-Tin. "...you might as well go too. Assume you're not going to see John again today, unless you hear otherwise."

~#~

It wasn't until several hours later that John emerged from his room. He changed himself and Jacob out of their sleep-crumpled clothes and then wandered down the corridor towards the lounge. As he passed Scott's door he could hear cursing and he smiled to himself before knocking on the door. "You OK in there, Scotty?" he called. "Do you need help?"

Scott's door flew open and John found himself being dragged inside and pressed down into the chair in front of Scott's computer. Scott lifted Jacob from his arms and then used his knee to push John and the chair towards the desk. "Fix that," he said brusquely, pointing at the screen.

John rolled his eyes at his brother, turned to the screen and barely managed to catch himself before he burst out laughing. "Is this supposed to be the '27?" he spluttered. "What the hell have you done to it?"

Scott leant past John and punched a series of keys which changed the erroneous-looking schematic diagram on the screen into a scrolling page of computer code. "If I knew _that_ I would've undone it," he growled. "It's been like that for the best part of an hour and nothing I've done to try and fix it has made the slightest difference. Please, just fix it for me."

John hunched over the keyboard and studied the screen intently. "Hmm," he muttered after a while. "How about…" He tapped away for several minutes and then, with a flourish worthy of Virgil, slapped the return key and sat back to wait while the system rendered an image of what would hopefully look like an air-worthy vehicle. "You owe me one, big brother," he said to Scott with a laugh when a correct-looking TI27 appeared on the screen. "You'd somehow managed to amalgamate several lines of code and that had the unfortunate effect of destroying the wing. Look here…" John brought back up the screen of computer code again and pointed Scott's mistake out to him. Scott was a little put out that John had found the problem so easily when he himself had been trying and failing to do so for almost an hour but he clapped his brother on the back and thanked him anyway.

"I owe you alright," he said with a grin. "I'd never have lived it down if Virg'd seen that mess." He jiggled Jacob around in his arms and smiled at the delighted squeal that the little boy let out. "This one's looking brighter after his nap and you're looking more like yourself than you were at lunch. I checked on you, by the way and then confined myself to my room when I was cruelly rejected by the other three…well, by Virgil, Alan and Tin-Tin."

John turned the chair round to face Scott. "Cruelly rejected?" he repeated with a quizzical expression on his face. "Whatever are you on about?"

Scott chuckled. "I offered my services as a replacement for yourself this afternoon but I was turned down flat. It seems that they'd prefer no-one, rather than, me helping them down there."

"Well, after the mess you just made of the TI27, I can't really blame them," John replied with a snort. "…and no, don't worry, I'm not going to tell them. As for what happened at lunch…" He paused and thought about what he was trying to say. "Well, let's just say that over the past few weeks, I've gained an extra understanding of how and why Dad just shuts down occasionally. I know he doesn't do it as much as he used to but something about Mama…something that someone says or does, still catches him off-guard on occasion. I guess that's kind of what happened to me earlier."

Scott nodded sympathetically but remained quiet when it seemed like John was mulling something over and over in his mind.

"Jacob…" John began, hesitantly. "Well, you already know he was already asleep when I went to my room at lunchtime. I didn't want to disturb him so I lay down on my bed with him."

Scott nodded again. "You were asleep when I popped in to check on you," he said gently. "That was after lunch, while everyone was having their coffee."

John shrugged. "I know I fell asleep eventually but I lay there for a while, just thinking about Rosie and Jacob and everything that's been going on…both here and in Tasmania. I…um…I need to ask you something but you might think it's…um…odd or…strange or…um…something."

Scott frowned as John's speech became more and more broken. He squatted down beside his brother, with Jacob balanced awkwardly on one of his knees, and then rested his hand on John's back. "I can handle odd or strange or something," he said quietly. "You'd slept your way out of your lunchtime funk and you were more or less back to normal five minutes ago. Spit it out and tell me what's on your mind or I'm going to assume you need more sleep and put you back to bed." Scott was pleased when his words drew a broken chuckle from John. "C'mon, Johnny. Tell me what's eating at you."

John held his arms out for Jacob and spent an exaggerated length of time tucking the little boy under his chin once Scott handed him over. "I got to thinking that I don't know what…um…what happened to Rosie after the funeral. I don't much like the idea of her being left behind in a country where no-one seemed to particularly know or care about her but I wasn't in any fit state to think about it before we left."

Scott reached out and squeezed John's knee. "No," he replied. "You weren't and no-one would have expected you to be. That's what Father, Joel and myself were there for. You don't need to worry about Rosie being left in Tasmania, Johnny, because she wasn't. You were upset enough already just before and then just after the funeral so Dad said that she'd come home with us. If she was here then she'd be safe and secure until you felt up to making a decision about what to do with her…so to speak. I think he's kind of assuming that you're going to want to put her in Mama's clearing and he's OK with that, if that's what you want to do."

John nodded slowly and then sighed. "So she's here on the island at the moment? She would have loved it here and I think, for Jacob's sake, that I it's probably right that she stays here. I take it she's hidden away somewhere so I'm not going to come across her with no warning? I'll see her in my own time but I don't want a sudden, unexpected reminder of her death to catch me unawares. My mind does enough of that for itself; I don't want my eyes helping it along."

Scott smiled sadly. "You won't come across her by accident," he said softly. "She's locked in the bottom drawer of Father's desk. He chucked most of the other stuff out so that there was somewhere safe to put her. She'll be fine in there until you're ready to deal with her…and don't forget, whenever that time comes, we're here for you. Father, myself, Grandma, Kyrano, we're all here to support whatever you decide to do."

John's stomach chose that moment to let out an almighty gurgle. Jacob picked up on the rumble beneath him and giggled loudly. This served to break up the slightly depressive mood in the room and Scott hauled John to his feet and pushed him gently in the direction of the door. "Time to eat, Johnny-boy," he announced. "This eating outside of mealtimes thing is getting dangerously close to becoming a habit, you do realised that, don't you?"

"Don't blame me," John replied, holding the hand that wasn't supporting Jacob up in front of him like a shield. "It's this one. He's determined to make me sleep through all my meals. I'll admit that I'm famished at the moment though; I could eat a horse…or maybe an extra-large portion of Kyrano's wonderful peppercorn steak."

John's stomach rumbled again and Scott shook his head. "Go," he told his brother. "Go. Forage. Find food. Do whatever you need to do but do it fast. I'd come and help but I'm supposed to be sulking and it'd be bad for my reputation if I was to come out too soon."

John snorted and slapped the touchpad to let himself out of Scott's room. "Well, I guess I'll be seeing you later then. Thanks for the…um…chat and, well I'm glad I fixed your plane."

"Me too, Johnny," Scott replied. "Me too."


	84. Chapter 84

~#~ (Chapter 84)

John went in search of someone who could arrange some food for himself and Jacob. He found Onaha in the kitchen making preparations for the evening meal so he sat Jacob in the as-yet unused kitchen highchair and chatted to the quiet Malaysian woman as she bustled around and warmed up the lunch that Kyrano had saved for them earlier.

He was still in the kitchen by the time Virgil wandered into the room. The artist grabbed a plate from one of the cupboards and proceeded to load it with fruit from the refrigerator, remaining completely oblivious to his brother and nephew's presence until John cleared his throat loudly behind him.

Virgil jumped, smacked his head on the top of the refrigerator, swore and then turned around to glare at his brother. "Was that entirely necessary?" he growled. "You could have at least waited for me to finish what I was doing before you scared the living sh..." Virgil paused when he realised that Jacob was in the room and was watching him. "...um...daylights out of me. What are you doing in here all on your lonesome anyway? Do you want anything?" He held the plate of fruit out to John who took a strawberry for himself and a small slice of melon for Jacob.

John took a bite of his strawberry and chewed it slowly. "I wasn't on my own," he replied eventually. "Jacob and I were eating our belated lunch and talking with Onaha but she went off to do something so then it was just us."

Virgil shrugged and sat down on one of the chairs. He pushed his plate so it rested midway on the table between himself and John and then grabbed a couple of grapes and started eating.

John ate another couple of strawberries while Jacob munched on his melon. He then looked at his watch and looked across at Virgil in confusion. "Is everything alright, down in the silos?" he asked cautiously. "Only it's not dinner time yet. You, Alan and Tin-Tin have been kind of spending every minute of every day down there for the past week and you're...well, you're obviously not down there now."

Virgil shrugged again and swallowed the mouthful of fruit he'd been eating. "Bit difficult to test the link between Five and 5b when Five isn't available. Brains forgot to mention that he had a conference call booked for this afternoon with a couple of designers, something to do with the expansion of the dark-side lunar base."

John nodded. "Fair enough," he replied. "I didn't mean to bug out on you all this afternoon, by the way. I took this one..." he stopped and waved his hand at Jacob and grinned when the little boy waved back. "I went to put him to bed and then ended up falling asleep myself." He reached up, stretched, and then scrubbed his fingers through the short hair at the nape of his neck. "I seem to be doing that a lot since Jacob came into my life."

"It's just a result of all the changes, I suppose," Virgil replied thoughtfully. "...that and the fact that just about everything about your life has been irrevocably altered in the space of a couple of months. That sort of thing is bound to affect you in some way, shape or form."

Virgil had drifted off into some sort of fugue as he allowed the words of his many counsellors and therapists to flood his mind. John smiled sadly and nodded before he leaned over and patted his brother on the back. This gentle movement was enough to break Virgil from his thoughts and as he made eye contact with John he nodded. "Well," he said roughly. "That's my opinion anyway. I think you're as normal as you ever were, not that any of us were ever entirely normal in the first place. Scott hardly sleeps, neither do you, I'm me and yes, I'm well aware that I have issues. Gordon's the bionic man and Alan...well, I don't think that needs explaining, does it?"

"No, it does not," John agreed and he shook his head fondly as he remembered some of his youngest brother's antics. "So, what are your plans for the rest of the day, what little there is left of it, of course?"

Virgil shrugged. "Don't really know," he admitted. "...but I haven't spent much time outside recently so I thought I might go for a walk. You want to come? Blanket invite can include small people as well, if required."

"Thanks for the offer but the blanket invite won't be necessary," John replied with a grin. "I'll come with you but Jacob can stay here. Scott and I tried to take him for a walk on the beach and it doesn't really work. Jacob's too heavy to carry and the stroller isn't going to work on the sand."

~#~

Scott appeared a couple of minutes later and helped John and Virgil finish up the fruit. The three brothers then delivered a very sticky, fruit-juice-covered baby to a delighted Ruth who immediately whisked him into the bathroom to bathe him.

Jeff, who had been speaking to his mother in the lounge before John had given her the baby, noticed his three eldest sons disappearing into their respective rooms, only to emerge a couple of minutes later wearing lightweight running gear and training shoes. He watched in amusement as the three jostled each other to the door and then grinned at the whoops and calls that reverberated up from the pool area as Scott, Virgil and John raced each other away from the house and down across the beach.

"Virgil doesn't stand a chance against the pair of them," a quiet voice commented from the doorway. "I'll go and tell Kyrano to put some extra food on for dinner."

"Good idea," Jeff agreed with a smirk. "Otherwise the rest of us aren't going to get a look in." The Tracy patriarch took in the slightly-hunched, self-hug that Gordon had himself wrapped in as he leant against the doorframe. "You OK, Gords? Because you don't look at all comfortable, if you don't mind me saying so."

Gordon pushed himself away from the doorframe, shrugged and then winced. "I tripped over the bottom of the pod door when I'd finished putting Four to bed. I got all twisted up and landed funny but I can't find Tin-Tin, Brains isn't here and I don't want to bother Virgil 'cos he'll tell Scott and then I'll have the pair of them on my back, if you'll pardon the pun."

Ruth's frank discussion from the day before was still at the forefront of Jeff's mind and he pursed his lips together to refrain from commenting. Gordon's health was an issue that the whole family tended to fuss over and it was something that Gordon had always hated. "You'll probably find Tin-Tin with Alan in the screen room," he said eventually. "He got another batch of films in the mail the other day and I know there were a couple that he'd picked out specifically with Tin-Tin in mind. That being said, I'm sure the point was probably for the pair of them not to be disturbed but I'll leave that one up to you, depending on how you're feeling."

Gordon went to shrug again but caught himself before he managed it. "I'm not sure yet," he replied quietly. "I think I'm going to tell Kyrano about the food and then go and lie down. If you see Tin-Tin can you send her my way?"

Jeff nodded again. "I will, although I'm sure she wouldn't mind being disturbed if you really need her."

Gordon nodded silently and slunk from the room. Jeff watched him go, with worry in his eyes and then wandered into his office to continue the fight against his ever-present pile of paperwork.

~#~

It was a couple of hours later when Jeff was drawn out of the office by the sound of talking in the lounge. He walked into the lounge to find Tin-Tin standing at the picture window looking down to the pool area. Alan was standing behind Tin-Tin with his arms tightly wrapped around her and with his chin resting gently on her left shoulder.

Jeff stepped up beside the pair and looked through the window to find that what had captured their attention was the return of the runners. The one-upmanship that had started on the way out of the house had obviously continued throughout the whole run and had spilled over into the pool area when Virgil, Scott and John had come back from the beach. All three boys had abandoned their shirts during the run and Alan, Tin-Tin and Jeff watched as they chased each other around, over and occasionally through the poolside furniture wearing just their shorts and training shoes.

"Oh, Mr. Tracy," Tin-Tin murmured quietly. "Isn't it good to see the boys letting their hair down? John's been so quiet since he came back from Tasmani...ah...Alan, what?"

Alan had lifted one of his hands from Tin-Tin's waist and clamped it over her eyes when he realised what the tag-team of Scott and Virgil were about to do to John. Scott, after a great deal of trying, had finally managed to catch hold of their platinum-blonde brother and threw him headfirst into the pool. Scott and Virgil piled in after him and Alan had barely got Tin-Tin's eyes covered before the dark-haired Tracy boys managed to separate John from his shorts.

John let out a howl and launched himself at Virgil, the slightly-slower of his tormentors. The pair disappeared beneath the surface of the water with a loud splash and Scott scrambled quickly out of the pool, knowing immediately which of the two boys was going to win this fight. Sure enough a wet pair of shorts landed at his feet a couple of seconds later, followed quickly by four training shoes, one of which fell straight back into the pool and sunk without trace.

Scott shook his head briskly to free up his plastered-down hair and then looked up towards the house and grinned when he spotted Tin-Tin frantically trying to free herself from Alan's hands. "Guys," he yelled, turning back to face the pool. "Hey, guys."

Virgil or John continued to chase each other around in the pool and gave no outward indication that they had heard Scott's shout. He thought for a moment and then sucked in a deep breath, stuck two fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly.

John and Virgil's heads shot out of the water and the pair of them looked across at Scott who raised his eyebrows and then gently inclined his head in the direction of the upstairs window. John followed his gaze, yelped and immediately scrambled towards the side of the pool which was nearest to the house. Virgil was slightly slower to cotton on to what Scott was saying but once he worked it out he very quickly joined John by the wall. Scott kicked off his wet shoes and socks and dropped Virgil's shorts onto the wall in front of him. He then dived over John's head to retrieve the shorts and the rogue training shoe from the bottom of the pool. He threw the shoe out over the wall, handed John his shorts and then pulled himself out of the water and went to fetch some towels.

Alan released Tin-Tin once he saw that John and Virgil had struggled their way back into their wet shorts. The pair clambered from the pool and wrapped themselves in the towels that Scott had left them. They then followed their eldest brother into the house, leaving the pool area strewn with six wet shoes and a matching number of socks.

~#~

Alan and Tin-Tin had disappeared by the time Scott, John and Virgil were dried, dressed and back in the lounge. Ruth heard them chattering and wandered out of her suite with Jacob contentedly cuddled against her breast. She laid him in John's arms and leant over to kiss his forehead. "He's been a little angel this afternoon, Johnny. I was a bit worried about him after this morning's issues but he's been just fine."

John nodded and then smiled down at his son. "He should be," he said softly. "He's had plenty of sleep and plenty to eat and he's been treated to a nice warm bath in the middle of the afternoon."

"He enjoyed it too," Ruth replied as she stroked her hand across Jacob's head. "Almost as much as his Uncle Gordon used to and I'll bet he's just going to love the pool when he finally gets in there."

John nodded again. "All in good time, Grandma. Gordy's already asked to be the first one to take him swimming and I kind of agreed to let him. We've all been pretty busy since then, though, so it hasn't happened yet. Where is Gordon, anyway? It's not like him to be away from where the action is."

Tin-Tin chose that moment to step back into the room. Overhearing the tail end of the conversation she searched out Jeff and nodded gently. "Gordon's been out testing the sensor modifications on Four." She spoke mainly to John but made sure she was loud enough that everyone else could hear. "I don't think you were around when he was making the arrangements with your father. He's been back for a couple of hours now and when I spoke to him he told me that the hoped-for six foot improvement in sensor depth turned out to be nearer eight foot." Tin-Tin paused and looked at her watch. "Dinner should be in about forty minutes. I'm sure Gordon will be up and...um...around and about by then."

Jeff watched a furrow appear across Virgil's brow as the most medically trained of the brothers picked up on Tin-Tin's unfortunate choice of words. Virgil opened his mouth to say something and then looked over at Scott and changed his mind. "I...um...think I'll go and do some sketching for half an hour. I'll be back before dinner."


	85. Chapter 85

~#~ (Chapter 85)

Virgil went straight from the lounge to check on Gordon. He knocked on the door and received an answering 'bleep' which meant that Gordon had unlocked it remotely from inside.

"Hey, Virg," Gordon called as his chestnut-haired brother pushed the door open and stepped through. "I thought it was only a matter of time before you came to find me. Did Tin-Tin rat me out?"

Gordon was lying flat on his back on his bedroom floor. A book lay on the floor beside him, as did the remote control for the door. A sports bottle half-full of fruit juice sat near Gordon's left shoulder and Virgil picked this up before lowering himself to the floor where it had been.

He sat and fiddled with the bottle for a few moments and then reached over and put it over by Gordon's other shoulder. "Tin-Tin didn't rat you out," he said quietly. "I just picked up on something she said and figured that you'd hurt yourself in some non-descript and non-drastic way. She said that the adjustments on the sensors worked better than we'd hoped, so what went wrong?"

"The adjustments worked great," Gordon replied with a smile. "I reckon we've gained an extra seven and a half feet of clear visibility and maybe another two or three feet of less clarity."

Virgil nodded. "That's great. But what happened to you?"f

Gordon sighed in relief when his shrugged reply only caused the mildest of twinges. "I tripped over the pod door," he admitted quietly. "I don't really know how or why but I went down over the bottom of the ramped bit and ended up in a heap on the floor. I didn't notice straight away but I obviously hit my arm at the same time. Look." He pulled the left arm of his shirt up to reveal the start of a vicious looking bruise which ran from the middle of his forearm and continued over his elbow.

Virgil gently poked at the offending limb and nodded happily when Gordon did nothing more than hiss at him. "That's going to look pretty impressive in the morning," he commented. "How's your back though? It smells like massage oil in here and you're looking relatively bright so I'm hoping that Tin-Tin's pretty much got you functioning again. She seemed to think that you'd be coming to dinner."

Gordon nodded. "I'm just trying to delay moving until the last possible moment," he replied. "...and I may well need some help getting up so if you'd like to stay then I won't complain."

~#~

Gordon was slower and stiffer than expected when Virgil finally helped him to his feet. The brothers walked slowly to the dining room and arrived just as Kyrano and Onaha were starting to serve the food. Virgil hovered behind Gordon until he was safely sitting in his seat beside John, Virgil then took his usual spot next to Scott.

~#~

The rescue alarm went off at 1.30 the next morning. Jeff, Scott, Alan and Virgil hit the lounge running and activated the link to Thunderbird 5. John followed shortly afterwards and then left again almost immediately when Jacob's hysterical screaming made communicating with Brains virtually impossible.

On the way back to his room, John came across Gordon walking slowly towards the lounge. The brothers exchanged a sympathetic look and then carried on their separate ways.

~#~

Gordon got to the lounge just in time to see Scott grab hold of his light fittings and spin out of view. Virgil, who had been heading towards the rocket portrait, paused when he spotted the pinched expression on his red-headed brother's face. "Go back to bed, Gordy," he suggested. "Or better still, go and help John with the baby. The alarm frightened him and he's being very...um...loud."

Gordon looked across the room at his father who nodded. "That's a good idea," he agreed. "Virgil, get going Alan, you too. Move boys, there's lives at stake."

Alan had stopped dead at the same time Virgil had, even though he had been heading in a completely different direction. He shot off across the room and disappeared through the doorway that would take him down to Thunderbird 2's silo. Virgil sent an apologetic look Gordon's way and then leant backwards against the rocket picture and disappeared from view.

~#~

"I'll go and help John," Gordon said quietly. "Just let me know what's happening. What's the mission? Does it involve Four? I know I'm currently slower than normal but I'm still the most qualified to pilot her."

Jeff shook his head and smiled sadly. "I know, Gordon. You'll always be the one who's most competent to pilot Four but this isn't a rescue that requires Four and even if it was I would have been sending Alan instead of you. It obviously took you far longer than normal to get up and out of bed and it would be grossly irresponsible to even contemplate sending you out on a rescue. What do you suppose would happen if I sent you out in Four at the moment? Chances are that your back would go into spasm after half an hour or so of piloting and you'd find yourself incapacitated at the bottom of the sea somewhere. Where would we be then, eh? Four's the only sub-aquatic vehicle we possess so how would you suggest we went about rescuing you when you'd be stuck in the only vehicle suitable for the task?"

Gordon shrunk in on himself under the weight of Jeff's words. "I wasn't...I...I just wanted to know where they were going and what the problem was," he said quietly. "I wasn't suggesting that I went out with them although I think I probably could if it was necessary."

Jeff purposefully breathed in a deep cleansing breath and then stepped out from around the desk and wrapped his arms around Gordon. "I'm sorry," he murmured. "I didn't mean to suggest that you're not capable. On a normal day you can do most things that the others can do but you've got to remember that today hasn't been a normal day. You're slow and you're hurting and the last thing I'd ever want would be for you to go out in Four and not come back. I've had quite enough of you and your near death experiences, thank you very much. If I never have to have another one then I'll die a happy man."

Gordon let out what could only be described as the cross between a sob and a laugh. "You make it sound like I plan these things out in advance," he complained. "I'd be quite happy never to have another one but that doesn't seem to be my lot in life, does it. I'd also be quite pleased if my god damn back would stop restricting what I can and can't do in whatever life I have left."

Jeff rubbed Gordon's back and then let him go. A particularly loud wail reverberated through the house and both men grimaced. "Go and help your brother," Jeff coaxed quietly. "The others are in Japan helping out with a light aircraft that's somehow found itself tangled up in the cables of a ski lift. We won't know what they're facing until Scott calls in and I'll let you and John know anything as soon as I do. OK?"

Gordon nodded. "OK," he agreed. "...and I'm telling you now, before I go and do it, that I'm going to disable the rescue sounder in John's room. He sleeps so lightly that the light alone will wake him up if there's a rescue. It'll probably wake Jacob up as well but at least it shouldn't terrify the poor little guy like the alarm obviously has."

Jeff nodded this time. "I agree but make sure you ask John first. I can't see him arguing with you over it but he does need to know."

~#~

It took John and Gordon a long time to calm Jacob down and the pair only succeeded in the end by taking the little boy outside and well away from the house.

Unlike the previous time that John had taken his son down to the beach in the middle of the night, this time it was almost as bright as daylight down on the sand. Whereas Scott created virtually no long-term light pollution when he launched Thunderbird 1 from under the pool, launching Thunderbird 2 required a large amount of light to ensure that Virgil got her out of the hangar safely and lined up correctly on the launch platform prior to take-off. The fact that Thunderbird 2 was out on the rescue meant that virtually every outside light was on near to the house so Gordon and John took Jacob down to the ocean and walked with him along the surf.

By the time they reached the edge of the lit area John's back and arms were aching but Jacob was asleep. The two brothers walked up the beach and sat side by side on the cool, dry sand. John waited until Gordon had made himself comfortable and then laid the sleeping boy in his brother's arms. He twisted his upper torso back and forth several times until he felt a satisfying pop and then flopped backwards so that he was staring up at the sky.

"I've been spoilt by the view up on Five," he murmured. "It's just not the same from down here, even using the big telescope up at the viewpoint. I'm going to really struggle with the research for my next book if I don't have access to the equipment on Five and I just can't see Dad letting me take Three up there for what he'd be sure to deem to be an unnecessary journey."

Gordon sighed sympathetically and then carefully slumped backwards onto the sand next to his brother. Jacob remained blissfully unaware of the world around him, cuddled comfortably against his uncle's flat, warm stomach.

"I'm sure he wouldn't object to you going up occasionally. Five's not just going to hang there indefinitely. She's going to need maintenance from time to time and calibrations and that sort of thing."

John shrugged. "It won't be the same though. I'm pretty sure I can use Five's long range sensors from down here but I won't be able to use the scope for my long-term, deep-space observations any more. The sort of things I use the scope for, the things that I use for the basis of my books, they need monitoring all the time. It'd be no use going up there for a day or two every month or so...no use at all."

Gordon looked up at the stars and frowned. "If Virgil and Brains have managed to give 5b complete control over the systems on Thunderbird 5 then surely it couldn't be too hard for them to give you some sort of remote control over the scope up there as well. It's all computerised, isn't it? It's not like the mostly-manual one in your room."

John looked thoughtful. "That's not a bad idea," he murmured. "...not a bad idea at all and it probably wouldn't take a lot of extra power or bandwidth to get it working. It's not like I'd be using it while there was a rescue on either so it wouldn't impact on International Rescue's resources or affect anything while there's an emergency situation in place. I'm sure that between us, Virgil, Brains and I can put something together to make it work."

"I'm yet to see anything that the three of you couldn't fathom out," Gordon replied with a chuckle. "Remind me to keep away from the lab while you're working on it or I might find myself crushed under the weight of your combined IQs."

John snorted. "It's not all that likely it'll happen straight away, anyway," he said quietly. "Alan and I will be sent up to take most of Five offline just as soon as we're confident that everything's working on 5b. I doubt we'll have had time to arrange anything with the scope before then. It'll probably have to wait until someone goes back up again for one of those maintenance runs that you mentioned. I can survive for a couple of months without it. My last series of observations were put on hold when Dad flew me out to Tasmania anyway."

Gordon nodded and then rested the side of his head against John's arm. "It'll get sorted," he replied. "What's that quote that Penelope uses? The one from that old film? Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow...?"

"Tut tut, Gordy," John rolled his eyes at his brother. "Penelope would have your head if she heard you calling Casablanca 'that old film'...but yes, that's basically the quote you were after." John sighed deeply and closed his eyes. "Did Dad give you any clue how long the others will be? I don't know about you but I'm quite comfortable here and now that Jacob's asleep it seems a shame not to take the chance of catching a few Zs ourselves." John cracked open one eye, peered at the face of his watch and then groaned. "It's either ridiculously early or ridiculously late, depending on your point of view and I for one won't get any more sleep once Jacob wakes up again. Any objections to a couple of hours of camping-out on the beach?"

Gordon pressed his head more firmly against John's arm. "No objections from me," he agreed. "Although it does seem odd staying so far from the house when there's an active rescue in progress. I know Dad said he'd keep in touch but it's still a bit...weird."

John nodded. "I know but he..." John reached up and clumsily stroked a finger across Jacob's forehead. "...probably won't stay asleep more than a few hours and then we can head back. If the others are still out then we can find out what's happening and get some sort of idea of when they'll be coming back. If they beat us back then...well...we'll sit in on the debriefing. Deal?"

Gordon wriggled closer to John so that Jacob was resting close to his father's side. "Deal," he mumbled. "He's safe enough there. Wake me if you need to." With that, Gordon closed his eyes and moments later the two brothers were both fast asleep.


	86. Chapter 86

~#~ (Chapter 86)

John woke slowly and frowned slightly when he realised he had fallen asleep on the beach. Memories of the night-time rescue came slowly to the front of his mind and he looked down to find Gordon slumbering beside him with Jacob still plastered against his stomach.

A moment later John's watch let out a flash of light and he realised that this was probably what had woken him. John lifted his arm and peered at his father's gently smiling face. "Hi," he whispered. "Is everything alright? Are the others on their way back yet?"

Jeff nodded. "That's why I had to disturb you," he replied. "…partly because I promised Gordon that I'd keep the pair of you updated but mainly because you've got less than twenty minutes to get yourselves back to the house before Virgil chargrills the three of you when he comes in to land. As careful as he is, he'd be hard pressed to miss you completely where you're lying. You didn't really pick your spot all that well."

John craned his head around as far as it would go and grinned at the small security camera that was flashing merrily at him from one of the nearby trees. "No, I guess we didn't," he said with a chuckle. "It seemed like a good idea at the time though. I'll get Gordon shifted and we'll be back with you shortly. How'd it go in Japan?"

Jeff rocked his head from side to side and then pursed his lips. "A few broken bones, a concussion and a lot of shock and upset for the people on the ski lift. No life-threatening injuries, just things that will take time and/or therapy to fix. I'm sorry to say that the pilot of the plane that hit them wasn't so lucky though. The boys got the plane untangled and back down on the ground without causing a great deal of additional damage but as soon as the emergency services entered the cockpit it was clear that the pilot had passed away. It seems that he'd suffered a massive coronary at some point during his flight and the doctors reckon that he'd probably been dead for several minutes before the plane finally hit the cables. If the ski lift hadn't been there then it would have probably piled straight into the mountainside behind them and the situation could have been much, much worse." Jeff closed his eyes and sucked in a deep, cleansing breath. He opened his eyes again and looked at John. "Fifteen minutes," he said quietly. "Get your brother moving, Johnny and get yourselves back in here."

John remained quiet but nodded in reply. Accidents, mountains and large amounts of snow were never a good combination where Jeff Tracy was concerned and John found that he had infinitely more understanding of his father's grief since he'd received the notice about Rosie's death. "We'll be back in a short while," he whispered. "…and don't worry, we'll be well out of the way by the time Virgil gets here."

Jeff nodded vaguely and John realised that his father's mind had wandered onto other things. He smiled sadly, closed down the connection between his watch and the house and then gently shook Gordon awake.

~#~

Thunderbird 1 was dropping noisily into her launch silo as John, Gordon and Jacob approached the house. Despite being terrified by the noise of the emergency siren earlier in the night, Jacob was entranced by the sight of Thunderbird 1 and he smiled brightly and squealed loudly at the huge, blue machine. "That's your Uncle Scott," Gordon told him with a grin. "He sure knows how to make an entrance. John, turn round so he can see Virgil coming in properly."

With a roll of his eyes, John did what he was told. The illuminated bubble of sky that was Thunderbird 2 rumbled into view, did a slow loop of the island to line up properly with the landing strip and then rapidly lost height and disappeared from view behind the cliffs that made up Tracy Island. "C'mon," John murmured quietly. "Let's get inside and get some coffee into Dad before the others get there. Scott's bound to be blaming himself for not saving the pilot, even though there was nothing he could have done for the poor guy and as Dad said, it could have been far, far worse."

~#~

Gordon followed John inside and chuckled when his platinum-haired brother practically dropped his son into Jeff's arms before he stood, groaned and stretched out his back. "I know he's too heavy to carry that far and yet I keep doing it," John griped. "I'm supposed to be intelligent but don't seem to be get my head round something as simple as 'don't carry a small child too far from the house without some sort of transportation device'. I don't see what I'm supposed to use though; the stroller just gets bogged down in the sand."

"How about one of the antigrav sleds?" Gordon suggested. "You could pad it out with towels or blankets and you could program it to follow you until you need it. I'm sure you could get Virgil, or maybe Tin-Tin to fit it with some straps to make sure that Jacob couldn't fall out."

John shrugged. "Maybe," he replied. "Dad, if you're alright with him for a minute then I'll go and get the coffees on. I know Kyrano will be up to start breakfast soon but I have a feeling everyone's going to be more than ready for a hot drink by the time they get back."

Jeff nodded and positioned Jacob in such a way that the little boy was sitting up on the edge of the desk with his feet resting against his grandfather's stomach. He held Jacob's arms gently but securely and slowly rocked him back and forth. Jacob squealed in delight and John rolled his eyes, shook his head and then left the room to make the drinks.

Gordon motioned his head towards the door. "I'll…um…I'll be back in a minute."

The slight falter in Gordon's speech brought Jeff's head spinning around from his game with Jacob. "Gordon?" he queried. "Is everything alright?"

Gordon paused and then nodded. "Yeah Dad, I'm fine now, look." He lifted his arms gingerly above his head, twisted his torso slowly around and then bent at the waist and reached towards the floor.

Despite the fact that he was moving slower than normal, Gordon had pretty much regained his usual range of motion and Jeff nodded approvingly. "That's looking good," he agreed. "So what was with the…" Jeff deepened his voice and put on a hint of Austrian accent before continuing with "…'I'll be back?'"

Gordon grinned, snorted and looked back towards the door. "Nothing exciting," he admitted. "Just a call of nature. We've been out there for a fair while and I wanted to get there and back before Scott high-tails it up here. If I know John there'll be cakes or cookies or…um…something with the coffee and I want to make sure I get some before Scott scoffs the lot."

It was Jeff's turn to roll his eyes and he carefully gripped Jacob with one hand so he could wave Gordon away with the other. "Away you go then and don't hang around. Thunderbird 1's already back in her hangar and Scott won't take long with her post-flight checks."

~#~

John found that he couldn't get inspired by any of the shop-bought cookies so plumped for raiding Ruth's special stash. He and Alan were the only ones able to get away with cookie-rustling and this was only because Ruth tended to feel sorry for them being shut away up on Thunderbird 5 for long periods of time. John paused for a second and wondered how long it would take for Ruth to realise that the perk was no longer relevant now that everyone was based on the island rather than being isolated up in space.

He shrugged to himself, took a large bite out of one of the chocolate chip cookies and then spread the rest of them neatly around a large china plate. He went back to the kettle, finished off the coffees and then wandered back towards the others with the tray.

~#~

Much to Gordon's dismay, Scott beat him to the coffee and the aquanaut walked back into the room to find his eldest brother perched on the edge of Jeff's desk with his nose buried deep within a cup of the steaming hot beverage. Gordon gave him an appraising look, liberated a cookie and then sat down with the cup of weak, milky coffee that John held out to him. "You OK, Scott?" he asked cautiously. "Only you look a little shook up."

Scott put his cup down on the desk beside him and shrugged. "Sometimes things…well, they just make you think, you know? The guy in the plane today wasn't much older than me. He successfully closed a high level business deal yesterday and was on his way home to celebrate when…BAM..." Scott closed his eyes and shrugged again. "Obviously he never stood a chance but…oh, I don't know, it just made me think, that's all."

Gordon nodded his head sympathetically and turned to look at John who was studying Scott. Scott locked eyes with John for a moment and it looked as if one of them was about to speak until the moment was broken by the arrival of Virgil and Alan.

"Man, I'm never going to be warm again," Alan complained bitterly as he followed Virgil into the room. "Ooh, coffee, just what I need. Cookies too. Uh oh, I think someone's going to be getting their butt kicked for raiding Grandma's stash."

John looked across at Scott who rolled his eyes and grinned. Alan was nothing if not amusing in his lack of tact and acknowledgement of other people's feelings but, as was often the case, he'd driven away the slightly depressive cloud that Scott had been in when he'd come back from the rescue.

"Grandma's not going to be kicking anyone's butt, you little twerp," Gordon replied. "It's not just you that has her wrapped around your little finger where sweets and treats are concerned, you know. I don't know if it's something in the genes that make the women go gaga for the blondes in this family but you and John have always been drip fed goodies by Grandma and Onaha whenever you're around and I think that the little guy over there…" Gordon paused and pointed to Jacob who was watching him from the safety of his grandfather's arms. "…is going to follow suit." Gordon paused, looked around and then dropped back onto the sofa beside John with a baffled look on his face. "Sorry, I have no idea where all that came from. I think I'll just shut up now and just sit here quietly with my cookie."

John patted Gordon on the shoulder and then dumped a heaped teaspoon of sugar into his remaining coffee. Gordon's baffled look deepened and he peered into the cup suspiciously.

"You had a diva moment," John replied with a grin. "…so I figured you might be a bit low on blood sugar. Don't argue about it; just sit there and drink your coffee like a good boy."

Gordon tentatively sipped at the overly-sweet drink and then, with a grimace, downed the whole thing in one go. He shuddered dramatically and then glared at John. "You just ruined a perfectly good cup of coffee," he complained. "…and I don't think I like you any more."

John shrugged and then turned towards the desk when Jeff cleared his throat. "Sorry," he murmured. "I guess we'll both shut up and let the three of you debrief so you and Dad can get back to bed for a bit. Me and Gordy have kind of…well, we've slept while you've all been busy."

Jeff chuckled and then turned serious and looked at Scott who was leaning heavily on the front of the desk. "I assume, by the state of you, that you didn't actually get any sleep before you went out?" Scott shrugged and then shook his head. Jeff rolled his eyes. "Alright, let's get this done then you three can rest. Scott, if you'd like to begin?"


	87. Chapter 87

~#~ (Chapter 87)

Scott, Alan and Virgil disappeared as soon as the debriefing was complete. Jeff finished logging all the details on his computer and then followed them, leaving John, Jacob and Gordon in an almost completely silent house.

"You want to help me with the testing downstairs?" John asked his brother. "The sooner it's done, the sooner we can go and get Brains. It's not that I'm looking forward to the trip up to Five or anything but I am looking forward to everything finally settling back into some sort of routine. The routine up on Five is pretty much static and unchanging and…well, I'm used to that, you know? I know everything's going to be different from now on and that it'll take time to get things back to something like normal but getting Brains down from Five and getting Alan and myself settled into 5b will go a long way towards that."

Gordon nodded and then shrugged. "Remember who you're talking to, Johnny," he said quietly. "I don't know squat about the workings of Five so there's probably not much I can do to help you down there. I can watch Jacob for you though and keep you company while you tinker."

John paused for a moment, appraised his brother and then carefully handed Jacob to him. "You let me know the moment you feel his weight start pulling on your back, OK? There are a few toys and a blanket down there already but I'll go and grab a bottle and some other bits and then I'll meet you there. If you find you can't make it then stop, sit down and I'll find you. Alright?"

Gordon nodded and then jiggled Jacob gently on his hip. "We'll be OK, won't we Jakey? We'll take it slow so Daddy can catch us up and then we can have some fun in the big room with all the flashy lights. You'll like that, won't you? There's no sounder in there so you won't get scared if there's a call while we're inside and that's got to be a good thing, right?"

Gordon was slowly ambling across the room while he was chattering to Jacob so John left him to it. He snuck quietly down the corridor leading to the bedrooms and gathered some clothes and sanitary items for Jacob. He then went to the kitchen and took a bottle out of the refrigerator. Kyrano was pottering around, starting preparations for the day ahead and he offered to tell Jeff where John, Gordon and Jacob were when he finally got back up. The quiet Malaysian man also put the cooked breakfast on hold until there were going to be more family members available to eat it.

~#~

John found Gordon and Jacob sitting on a blanket in an out of the way corner of Thunderbird 5b. He dropped the clothes and other items onto the edge of the blanket and bent down to kiss Jacob's head. He patted Gordon's hair, received a grin in reply and then turned to face the bank of computers.

Half an hour into John's testing, Kyrano arrived with a tray stacked with hot, buttered toast and fragrant, crispy bacon. Tin-Tin followed her father carrying a large pitcher of fruit juice and a stack of beakers. As she moved further into the room, Gordon noticed that she had a small foldaway table tucked under one arm. He sniffed appreciatively, lay Jacob gently down on the blanket and scrambled to his feet to help.

He took the table from Tin-Tin and set it up in a small gap between two large pieces of equipment. Kyrano sat the loaded tray upon it and then took the jug and beakers from Tin-Tin and rested them beside the tray. "Master Scott did not stay in his bed for very long," he said, by way of explanation. "He awoke requiring sustenance so I took the liberty of arranging breakfast for the three of you at the same time as preparing his. He is upstairs at the moment, breaking his fast, and he asked that I tell you he would be 'down to help you soon'. Unfortunately I cannot pass this message on as Master Scott will not be 'down to help you' anytime this morning. Assuming that he drinks his coffee with as much gusto as usual, Master Scott will find himself drowsy and will hopefully decide to return to his room for additional rest."

Gordon frowned slightly as he absorbed Kyrano's words, then a grin formed on his face and he looked across at Tin-Tin who nodded and smiled in return. "Mr Tracy contacted my father just before retiring to bed. He rightly assumed that Scott would not sleep after the rescue and he asked that something be prepared for Scott that would help him rest. He's requested it before, without Scott's knowledge of course, and Father now simply adds a tonic to Scott's coffee. It will be about twenty minutes before the effects are felt, by which time Scott will have finished his breakfast and will hopefully return to his bed to sleep. He's only failed to go back to his room one time in the past and on that occasion he made it outside to one of the sun loungers before falling asleep. Father, Mother and Mr Tracy decided to leave him be and kept an eye on him. He was a little confused when he woke up out there but usually, when he's gone back to bed, he's been fine. Mother's upstairs watching him at the moment and she's going to try and prod him in the right direction once he's done with breakfast."

"That's naughty," Gordon grumbled amicably. "Great but…naughty. I can't say I'm really surprised though, Scott's his own worst enemy where sleep's concerned and at least Alan's around now if One's needed. Dad didn't want to let me out at all yesterday so there'd be absolutely no way in hell that he'd give me the reins of One anytime today."

John, who had wandered over and picked Jacob up off the blanket, patted Gordon on the back and reached around him for some toast. Jacob immediately grabbed a half-slice off him and crammed the corner in his mouth. John took his own toast and sat back on the blanket with the little boy propped up between his legs. Tin-Tin reached for a couple more slices of toast, put them on a plate with some bacon on top and then sat down beside John on the blanket. Gordon followed her example, sitting on the other side of Jacob and Kyrano quietly left the room, leaving the friends to enjoy their impromptu breakfast picnic.

~#~

Between them, John, Tin-Tin and Brains made great headway into the testing of 5b. The room started to get a little cramped when Virgil and Alan joined them, just before lunch, so Gordon made his excuses and took Jacob back up into the house for some fresh air.

He decided to change the little boy in the comfort of John's bedroom and ended up almost colliding with a groggy-looking Scott who had clearly only just stumbled out of bed. "Feeling better?" he asked quietly. "You were dead on your feet when you got back from Japan."

Scott scrubbed a hand through his sleep-mussed hair and then looked at his watch. "Wow. I guess I really did need some more sleep. It only feels like five minutes since breakfast."

Scott's stomach grumbled loudly at his mention of food. Jacob cackled loudly and Scott poked him gently in the stomach. "You can talk," he said with a grin. "You eat enough for two little people your size."

~#~

The testing of Thunderbird 5b was pretty much complete by dinner time that afternoon. Across the table, Virgil tentatively suggested that perhaps it would be a good idea to schedule the launch of Thunderbird 3 for the following day and, to his surprise, the Tracy patriarch readily agreed. "If you assure me that the testing's been done as thoroughly as humanly possible," Jeff began. "…then I believe you. John, Alan how does after lunch tomorrow strike you?"

John looked across the table at Alan who just shrugged so he turned back towards his father. "I guess that'll be OK," he replied. "As long as someone tells either Kyrano or Onaha that we're going, so as to make sure that we get an appropriately light lunch. I'd rather not have a repeat of the roast dinner incident."

Alan scowled at him. "Once," he complained. "_Once_ I've been sick on take-off and you're never, ever going to let me forget it, are you?"

John clamped his mouth shut in a bid not to laugh at Alan's discomfort; he then raised his eyes to meet Scott's, only to find his brother in a similar tight-lipped situation to himself.

Jeff looked between the boys and rolled his eyes. "I'll tell Kyrano myself," he said with a grin. "That way there'll be no mistake and, with any luck, _everyone's_ lunch will stay where it's put."

This was too much for Scott. He was feeling particularly overcharged with energy due to the abnormal amount of sleep he'd had that morning and he let out a howl and then fell about laughing. This in turn started John off, Jacob started laughing because his father was and very soon Gordon had joined in as well. Alan scowled at his three brothers and then gave Virgil one of his patented death-glares, threatening death or bodily injury should the chestnut-haired artist dare to join in the hilarity. Unfortunately for Jeff's youngest son, the glare had the opposite of the intended effect on Virgil. He looked, first at Scott, then at John, then Gordon and finally back at Alan. The young, blonde astronaut hadn't moved from his chair and his scowl had grown deeper to the point of being uncomfortable. Virgil's resolve crumbled and he joined his brothers in their laughter. Alan threw his hands up in the air in disgust, scrambled out of his chair and stormed from the room.


	88. Chapter 88

~#~ (Chapter 88)

John and Alan had both a light breakfast and a light lunch before boarding Thunderbird 3 the next afternoon. John took the controls, as was standard practice whenever both brothers were aboard the large, red rocket and Alan travelled up to Thunderbird 5 in the comfortable passenger compartment. During the flight, the two blonde brothers chatted quietly to one another through the comm system and all too soon John found himself reporting that they were on final approach to their home-from-home; the large, geostationary satellite that was Thunderbird 5.

He lined Three up, ready for docking with Five and then left the rocket hanging motionless beside her sister ship. He climbed slowly out of his chair, rose to his feet and then stood by the window. "Al," he said softly. "I don't think I can do this. That's my home out there. I know you don't think of her like that but I'm really not sure we should be shutting her up and abandoning her up here. It seems…I don't know, wrong somehow. My head says that it's the right thing to do but at the same time my heart says that it's most definitely not. She's…um…she's looked after us and protected us from the vastness of space, year after year and she's barely quibbled or complained and she's pretty much never broken or let us down. I…um…oh, I don't know. Do you understand what I'm trying to say?"

There was a soft whoosh as the door to the command cabin slid open and Alan stepped through. He quietly walked up and stood beside John, who was still staring out of the window at the slowly revolving Thunderbird 5. "I understand," he murmured. "…although I've never had quite the same link with her that you have. I've never been up here when she's had a hole blown in her and Dad wouldn't allow me up here when she was new and you were having all those problems with the gravity and the climate controls. The old girl's never locked me in a small room and kept me safe until my brothers could come and rescue me and she's certainly never tried to poison me by mixing effluent into my drinking water. She saved all that drama for the one person who loves her and cares for her the most; you."

John let out a wet sniff and then chuckled. "Less of the old," he griped light-heartedly. "…and don't try to tell me that you're not going to miss her because I won't believe you. Sure, you're going to enjoy being back on Earth more often and I'm sure you're going to relish the chance to hang around with Tin-Tin more than you used to be able to but don't, just don't try to tell me that you're not ever going to miss it up here."

Alan leant the side of his head against John's shoulder and chuckled softly. "I'm certainly going to miss being able to come up here when Tin-Tin goes off on one at me. When she's having her evil weeks and won't let me so much as talk to her…I'm going to miss it then. The island sure seems small when Tin-Tin's having one of those weeks."

John snorted and then, without looking, reached up and patted the side of Alan's face. "I often wondered why you'd suddenly decide to swap with me at little or no notice," he replied. "I never thought to try and plot it on a calendar; I guess I'd have worked it out pretty quickly if I had."

Alan flushed red and shrugged. "Can I stay up here?" he asked. "...if I promise to keep out of the way. It'll be the last time we dock for some time and I'd kind of like to be a part of it, even if I'm not actively flying."

John nodded and pushed Alan gently into the secondary pilot's position. "Strap in and you can stay there," he murmured and then pressed a sequence of buttons. "Brains, are you ready for us?"

There was a gentle hiss and then Brains' quiet voice rang out through the speakers. "A-a-affirmative Thunderbird 3. I ha-have you on a-a-approach and the we-we-welcome mat is out."

John nodded and then pressed the button to disconnect from Brains. "You ready, Al?" he asked. "All strapped in?"

Alan rolled his eyes. "Yes, Dad," he replied. "Do you want to come back here and check I've done them up properly or are you going to believe I'm a big boy and can do my straps up myself?"

John raised his eyebrows and stared Alan down before deciding against answering. He dropped into his own chair, secured himself in with the harness and then began docking procedures between Thunderbird 3 and Thunderbird 5.

~#~

All too soon the two Thunderbirds were fused together. John and Alan stepped out of Three and into the cool, air-conditioned corridor of Thunderbird 5. They were met, about half way to the control room, by Brains who then turned and walked back with them through the softly illuminated passageways that lead to the main room located along the outer edge of the main body of the satellite.

"H-h-how did Jacob take to you le-le-leaving him," he asked after a moment. "Di-di-did he n-n-notice that something was going on-on-on?"

John smiled and then shook his head. "I don't think so," he replied. "Grandma said she was going to give him a bath and that tends to take forever so he probably hasn't even realised I'm missing yet. I'm more worried about how he's going to react when it's time for him to go to bed. I have a feeling there may be something of a tug of war between Dad and Scott as to which one of them gets to put him down for the night. If Jacob picks up on it then it's doubtful that anyone on the island will get much sleep tonight."

"Apart from Virgil," Alan murmured in reply. "Jacob would be hard-pressed to disturb him."

John chuckled. "True," he agreed. "…and I suppose Grandma may just about get away with it too, assuming she doesn't try to put herself between them."

Alan snorted and then shook his head. "I'm glad we're going to be out of it up here," he replied. "Even if you being up here is what's going to cause any problems in the first place."

John shrugged and then sighed as he realised that they had reached the airtight door to the control room. "We'll have to wait and see," he murmured and he leant hard on the door to push it open. "Maybe Jacob will be as good as gold and Gordon will cause the chaos instead."

Brains frowned slightly as John wandered slowly through the door. "Are-are-are you s-s-sure you want to stay up here to-to-tonight?" he asked. "I-I-I'm sure we can get e-e-everything wrapped up soo-soo-sooner if necc-necc, if required."

Alan rested his hand on Brains' shoulder and held him back to allow John to get a good few metres ahead of them. "He's struggling," he said quietly. "Not with Jacob or 5b or anything, just…generally."

Brains quirked an eyebrow at Alan's quietly uttered words which made the young man huff. "I know you all seem to think that I'm blind and completely oblivious to the world around me but I'm not…at least not where John's concerned and he's struggling, Brains. He's doing it quietly but he's definitely struggling."

Brains blinked several times and thought for a moment before eventually shaking his head. "E-e-emotions aren't really my-my-my thing," he admitted. "Ne-ne-never have been. Sh-should we go-go-go in?"

Alan nodded and pushed open the door which John had left ajar. He stepped through to find John standing in front of the huge picture window. The astronaut had his forehead resting against the glass and was staring down at the earth which was quietly spinning two hundred miles below him.

At the sound of the door closing behind Alan, John turned and held out his arm. Alan frowned slightly and then slipped himself under the arm and was surprised when John pulled him close.

"Sorry," John murmured. "I guess I've kind of got used to having someone to hold on to."

Alan snorted in amusement. "Are you telling me that Jacob, in just a few weeks, has managed something that Dad gave up as a lost cause years ago?"

John frowned for a moment and then grinned. "I guess he has," he replied. "Dad, the great and all powerful Jeff Tracy, bested by his eight month old grandson. There's great blackmail potential in that, I hope for Dad's sake that Gordy doesn't work it out."

"What, Gordon the cuddle-bug? I doubt it and even if he does then he's not going to complain. Oh, and he can hardly criticise you for it, now can he?"

John smiled and shook his head. "No, that's true." John looked over his shoulder and scanned the room. "Where'd Brains go?" he asked. "I vote for finding him and then having a look what Grandma's stashed in those hot-boxes before we get cracking with what we have to do here this afternoon."

~#~

After their mid-afternoon snack John, Alan and Brains set about carefully deactivating the various systems around Thunderbird 5. It wasn't something that was routinely done due to the satellite not usually being left unmanned for long periods of time so great care had to be taken that things were shut down correctly to ensure they could be easily reactivated as and when required. For the most part Thunderbird 5 would be worked remotely from 5b but on occasion, for example when routine maintenance was required, many of the systems would need to be switched back on so that Five could be boarded safely.

The three men worked in a companionable silence until Alan started complaining that he was hungry. They ate dinner and then retired to the lounge for a couple of hours before Alan and Brains retired to bed. John remained in the lounge so he could call down to the island to get an update on Jacob.

It was a slightly frazzled looking Jeff who answered the call. He told John that Jacob had put up a tremendous fight about going to bed. Both he and Ruth had walked the little boy around the house and Scott had taken him outside and along the beach even though it had been dark for several hours.

Eventually Gordon had managed to persuade the three eldest Tracys to give Jacob to him and, despite their objections, had simply taken Jacob back his own room and tucked both himself and the baby into bed. Jacob had quietened almost instantly and had fallen asleep just moments later. Gordon stayed awake just long enough to see Jeff stick his head through the door to check on them and then he too had succumbed to sleep.

~#~

In the morning the occupants of Thunderbird 5 rose, dressed and breakfasted. They completed a few final checks on the link between Five and 5b and then Brains took himself off to Thunderbird 3 so that John and Alan could spend a little time saying their goodbyes to the space station.

All too soon the two slightly subdued Tracys were done and back with Brains on Thunderbird 3. As before, John was the one to be piloting so Alan and Brains took their places down in the passenger compartment and left the more senior astronaut to take them home.

John called down to the island to tell Jeff that they were ready to leave. He waited for a moment until the call was answered and chuckled when he found himself facing a madly grinning Jacob rather than Jeff, who he'd been expecting. "Hello you," he said with a laugh. "You look like you're having fun down there but I'm sure you're a bit young to be running the desk on your own. What have you done with Granddad?"

There was a deep chuckle and then Jacob squealed loudly as he slid backwards across the desktop until he was flat against Jeff's chest. Jeff then smiled into the communicator. "Hello John," he said brightly. "I see you've met my newest recruit. I'm not sure how much work he's actually doing but he's certainly keen. I'd have to give him ten out of ten for effort."

John grinned and rolled his eyes. "You're both in a good mood," he pointed out. "Am I to assume that you all managed to get some decent sleep once Uncle Gordon got his hands on Jacob?"

Jeff nodded and then quickly captured Jacob's hands when the little boy folded himself forwards in an attempt to grab the little screen that was displaying John's picture. Jeff slid him the rest of the way off the desk, caught him as he slid downwards and then rolled him gently up his arms and against his chest.

"This little devil," he said, attacking the little boy's ribs with his fingertips and making him squeal. "This little devil spent the whole night in bed with your brother. I was starting to get a bit worried when Gordon didn't appear for his pre-breakfast swim but when Scott and myself went to check on him we found that he and Jacob were both still fast asleep. You know, after all these years, I think we may have finally discovered a way of getting Gordon to sleep through the night."

The last of the slight depression that John had been feeling since waking that morning evaporated with Jeff's comment and he burst out laughing. When he eventually looked back at the screen he found that Jeff had transferred him from the little communicator on the desk to his more usual portrait picture on the wall. Jacob was still cuddled up sideways against his chest but he had been turned onto his right side, facing outwards and was watching John with an adoring look on his face.

John waved gently at him and then looked up to meet Jeff's merrily twinkling eyes. "He's going to get away with murder, isn't he?" he asked. "…with a look like that, I mean and I think I'm beginning to work out how come Alan used to get away with so much when he was little." He stopped and cocked his head to one side. "Mind you, he got away with a lot when he was not so little too and he still sometimes manages it now. Oh dear God, I'm doomed."

It was Jeff's turn to laugh which in turn set Jacob off into a long fit of giggles. Eventually the little boy calmed down and then hung, peacefully, in Jeff's arms, staring across at his father.

Jeff craned his neck and looked awkwardly downwards, trying to work out whether his grandson had fallen asleep. "Are you ready to come back?" he asked quietly.

John tipped his head onto one side so that Jacob was equivalently the right way up. "He's not asleep," he replied. "And yes, I'd like to get on my way, if that's OK? Brains and Alan are going to start to wonder what's happened to me if we hang here much longer!"

Supporting Jacob securely with the whole of his left arm, Jeff leaned over and punched a series of buttons on his computer. He leaned forwards slightly and squinted at the screen. "You're good to go, John. Have a safe trip and get back in touch when you're on final approach." With his right hand, Jeff lifted Jacob's arm and made him wave at the screen. John grinned, waved back and then pressed the button to disconnect him from the island. He then pressed his hand against a large panel which controlled ship-wide communications.

"Welcome aboard International Rescue flight TB3…" John paused and looked at his watch. "11.26. Please note that this is a direct flight to Tracy Island and there will be no stopping for toilet breaks, sightseeing or souvenirs."


	89. Chapter 89

~#~ (Chapter 89)

John abandoned Thunderbird 3 almost as soon as he had her secured within her hidden silo. He left Brains and Alan to do the post-flight checks and made his way up into the house.

Virgil was pacing the lounge with a distraught and squirming Jacob in his arms. A look of pure relief flooded his face when John stepped into the room and held his arms out for his son. Virgil gently handed Jacob over and breathed out a long, deep but slightly shaky breath. "Just in the nick of time," he commented. "I was just about ready to drag Gordon out of the sea so he could calm him down."

John chuckled and kissed Jacob's head as the little boy burrowed contentedly into the chest of his flight-suit. "Where's everyone else?" he asked. "Onaha, Grandma…Dad?"

Virgil pointed in the direction of Jeff's office. "Dad got a call from New York. It seems that there's something in the small print of the Donnelly contract that's got the attorney's in a flap. Dad's sent Scott up to try and sort it out but he needed to put his full concentration into what he was doing and he couldn't do that with the little guy in there. Tin-Tin flew Grandma and Onaha over to the mainland this morning and Dad insisted that they didn't return until Three was back, down and well and truly settled. I haven't seen Kyrano for a couple of hours but he mentioned earlier that he was going to spend some quiet time in the garden. Gordon was already down at the beach when Dad called for someone to take Jacob so I ended up with him."

John nodded. "And that's why it was you giving us clearance to land?" he asked. "Where were you? Downstairs?"

"Me and him…" Virgil stopped and pointed at Jacob. "…we were both down there and don't worry, he's only been making that fuss since we came back up. I think he kind of likes it down there and thought we should stay. So, did everything go OK up on Five? Everything shut down properly? No problems?"

John nodded again. "It all went pretty much according to plan," he replied. "…and it sounds like you had more drama down here last night than we had up there."

Virgil grimaced. "You heard about that?" he asked. "I thought Dad wasn't going to tell you because you'd want to come back if you knew they couldn't get him to sleep."

"He told me when I called down before bed last night," John replied. "…and yes, he's right, I would have wanted to come back down, no matter how impractical that would have been. Jacob's my responsibility and it's not fair on my part if he disturbs the whole house because I wanted to go up to Five."

Virgil shrugged. "I don't think anyone really minded," he said quietly. "Although I think Scott and Dad were frustrated that Gordon had him asleep within minutes of getting his hands on him. It was obvious to everyone that the little guy needed to go to sleep, he just couldn't, or wouldn't, settle until Gordon took him to bed." Virgil shrugged again. "It was such a ridiculously easy solution that I don't understand why no-one else had thought of it. He's asleep now, by the way…in case you hadn't realised. I guess he wore himself out fighting with me."

John rested his hand gently against Jacob's head and then jumped when the door behind him swished open. Jeff stepped out and stretched his arms with a groan. "You made good time, John," he commented as John turned towards him. "I'm sorry I wasn't here to welcome you back but something came up with the Donnelly contract. We've managed to iron out a few bumps but Scott's almost there now so they're going to take a break and then sort the rest out with him. Did you have a smooth flight back?"

John nodded. "It was fine; although I'm glad I left the others with the post-flight checks because a certain little sleeping person here was kicking off again."

Jeff leaned sideways so he could see Jacob's face. "He looks peaceful enough now but it seems he's starting to take after Alan in more than just his looks. I hope this apparently short fuse he's developed over the past few days isn't a precursor of things to come. Hopefully he was just pining for you and not sickening for something or, God forbid, developing Alan's temper."

~#~

After completing the post-flight checks on Three, Alan left Brains in 5b, changed and then went in search of Gordon. He eventually found him in one of the quieter coves which the water-loving Tracy tended to use whenever he chose to dive among the island's many aquatic inhabitants so he sat down on one of the large boulders near to the water's edge and waited for Gordon to notice him.

~#~

Tin-Tin, Onaha and Ruth arrived back just before dinner. Kyrano had prepared a simple but tasty, spiced chicken salad for everyone, with diced eggs, feta cheese and fresh-from-the-garden cherry tomatoes.

Scott called in halfway through the meal so Jeff stepped out of the room to speak to him. Scott reported that he'd reached an agreement on the problematic wording on the contract and Jeff nodded approvingly. He then told Scott that it was up to him as to whether he travelled back home again that evening or not.

Scott covered his surprise well and less than five seconds later he decided that he would spend the night in New York and that he'd fly back to the island in the morning. He finished the call very soon after he'd made his announcement and Jeff was left with the impression that the connection had been cut off quickly in order not to give him the chance to change his mind.

He wandered back to the dinner table to find the remaining boys in high spirits and it was only as he thought back on the previous few minutes that he realised that the others must have overheard every word of his conversation with Scott. "Settle down everyone. Your brother deserves a night out as much as any of you. He's been holding the fort here pretty much constantly for the last few months, apart from that one night at Penny's and the short sabbatical to Tasmania with John."

There was a lot of hand waving, mumbling and shaking of heads and it took Jeff a moment to work out that the others were happy for Scott rather than resentful of his being away. He rolled his eyes and motioned back to the food. "If we're all quite sure we're alright with the arrangements then could we please calm down and finish our meal?"

~#~

Scott's sleek black jet eventually appeared in Tracy airspace at 11.20 the following morning. He landed the plane and then managed to slink back through the hangars and into the house without encountering anyone other than Kyrano who waved him on his way. He disappeared into his room and remained there until lunch which he devoured like a starving man. Jeff gave him a knowing look and chose not to comment.

~#~

That afternoon Alan and John split 5b duties between them. Alan spent the early part of the afternoon down there until Jacob fell asleep. John laid the little boy in his bed, gave Jeff the parent's unit of the baby-monitor and then swapped places with his brother. Brains, who was still in Thunderbird 5 mode had already offered to take 5b's mobile night-time console back to his room for the night.

The mobile console had been Virgil's brainchild. He had been determined that whoever was manning 5b would be able to spent the night in their own bed, in their own room. Up on Thunderbird 5 there was a small bank of computers, complete with sounders, built into the wall of the tiny bedroom. This was completely immobile but served the same purpose as Virgil's new mobile console; to wake the current space monitor and alert him that someone required International Rescue's assistance if a call came in during the night. Scott had planned to have it in with him the previous night but when he'd been sent to New York he had been forced to hand it to Jeff who took it into his room instead. To Jeff's relief it had remained mercifully quiet and he had managed to have a decent night's sleep once Gordon had finally settled down with Jacob.

~#~

Life on the island settled into a routine over the next few weeks. One of either John, Alan or Brains would take the mobile console to bed with them and then return it to 5b in the morning. After a couple of days they also started using it during mealtimes so that the whole family could enjoy sitting down and eating together.

Other than mealtimes, one of either John or Alan tended to sit down in 5b. They were occasionally replaced, usually at random intervals, by either Brains or Tin-Tin and on one occasion Virgil found himself covering for John after being sent to tell him that Jacob had vomited his breakfast up all over Jeff's office.

Alan and John settled into a particularly fluid routine that tended to revolve around whatever Jacob was doing at the time. If Jacob was asleep then John would be found manning the 'satellite' but once the little boy woke up Alan would swap places with his older brother so that he could spend some quality time with his son.

~#~

This worked well for several weeks and Jeff eventually commented to Scott, John and Virgil that he was surprised by Alan's lack of resistance to spending so much time in 5b. In previous months or years he would have made all manner of excuses to stay down on the island rather than being sent up to Thunderbird 5.

Scott and John look at one another and grinned. Virgil watched the pair of them and bit his lip to refrain from chuckling.

"Er, yes. About that…" Scott replied hesitantly. "It's nothing untoward Father but…um…you know how Alan used to complain he got bored and lonely up on Five?"

Jeff nodded vaguely. "Yes. It's the main reason he'd try anything not to go up there. Although on occasion he would come and beg me to swap him with John. I used to think he was just being contrary but I…ah…I worked out what the trigger was to that in the end."

John snorted. "More than I ever did," he mumbled. "I just thought he was being deliberately awkward. I'm going to be interested how he thinks he's going to get away from her the next time she gets like that though."

"Indeed," Jeff agreed with a chuckle. "Now, I'm probably going to regret asking this but what does any of that have to do with why he's suddenly happy to spend the bulk of his time tucked away down in 5b? Am I to assume that he's no longer feeling lonely or bored and that…how shall I put this…? That he's found a friend who's willing and able to keep him occupied? I take it there is some actual work going on down there as well as…well…fraternising?"

The three boys looked at one another and burst out laughing. After a moment or two they calmed back down and Scott turned back to face his father. "Tin-Tin's set up a small workbench along the wall where the door is and has taken the bulk of her work in there. Alan's been helping or, in Tin-Tin's words, hindering her with some of the stuff she's working on at the same time as monitoring the systems in 5b. They do genuinely seem to be doing a fair amount of work down there and, for the moment, it's working. I wouldn't be at all surprised if there's an almighty great falling out over it at some point but, as I said before, it's working…for now."

Jeff didn't look entirely convinced and stared at Scott for a moment as if scrutinising him for any untruths. "If you say so," he said eventually. "I promised Alan, after you three got back…" Jeff paused and waved his arm to encompass Scott, John and Jacob who was sitting quietly on John's knee. "I promised him that I'd trust him and that's what I'm going to do…for now. Tin-Tin can stay where she is while it's having a positive effect on Alan but if I get even the slightest whiff that anything…undesirable is going on down there then they'll be split up and she'll be back in with Brains faster than the pair of them can say 'copulation'. You…" He stopped again and pointed at Scott who was desperately trying to keep a straight face, "…you police your troops well and we won't go far wrong. Got it?"

Scott bit his lip in the same manner that Virgil had just a couple of minutes before. "Yes, sir," he squeaked. "Will do. Do we have permission to leave now? Please, like NOW?"

Jeff rolled his eyes. "Don't bother," he replied as he raised himself up out of his chair. "You three…or rather you four, stay here. I'm going to get a coffee."


	90. Chapter 90

~#~ (Chapter 90)

It was almost a week later and life in the villa had begun at its usual early hour. Scott was first up, closely followed by his father and then Gordon, who appeared briefly before going down to the pool for his early-morning swim.

"Have you seen John yet this morning?" Jeff asked as he watched Gordon perform a graceful near-perfect dive into the cool, clear water of the pool. "He's been up before Gordon virtually every day since you and he got back here with Jacob."

Scott shrugged. "Titch was up and fussing at about three o'clock this morning," he replied. "I got up and knocked but John said they were fine so I left him to it. It took a while for everything to calm down in there again, maybe four or even four fifteen? It's been pretty much silent since then. I stuck my ear against the bedroom door when I came past and I could hear some rustling so I assume Johnny's reading while Jacob's asleep."

Jeff nodded absently as he watched Gordon slowly swim a couple of lengths while he warmed his muscles up. "Leave him be," he said quietly. "If he's having a quiet morning then leave him be. Ah, Kyrano, great timing."

Kyrano had chosen that moment to step through the door with coffee for the two men. He served the hot drinks and then disappeared again, leaving both Jeff and Scott in the quiet room enjoying a rare moment of pure peace.

Jeff went back to the window with his mug and resumed his silent watch on Gordon's morning workout while Scott rummaged around on the coffee table and picked out a magazine to read.

~#~

The peace was shattered just ten minutes later when Scott's watch flashed and then croaked out his name. Scott's head shot up from his magazine and his eyes met Jeff's equally worried-looking ones for a moment before he pressed the button on his watch to reply.

"Johnny, was that you?" he asked. "Are you alright?"

There was a long pause and Scott was seriously beginning to wonder if he was going to get a reply when John let out a loud, shaky sigh followed by a sniff.

"Johnny, are you alright?" Scott scrambled to his feet as Jeff motioned towards the door. "I'm on my way but tell me what's wrong. Is it Jacob? Has something happened to Jacob? Talk to me, Johnny. Please."

Scott reached the doorway just a fraction sooner than Jeff so beat him out into the corridor. Both men set of towards the bedrooms at quick pace and Scott continued to speak quietly into his watch as he walked. John remained almost completely quiet apart from the occasional hitched breath which reverberated clearly out of Scott's watch.

~#~

Scott hit the override switch on John's door panel and scooted through into the first of his brother's rooms before the door was even fully open. He hurried across the room, with Jeff following on his heels and then slammed his hand on the pad to open the bedroom door.

He spotted the cause of John's distress almost immediately upon entering the room. John, who had tears streaming silently down his face, was sitting up on his pillows surrounded by paperwork, letters and books. He had his back and head resting against the wall behind him and had his knees pulled up level with his chest. He was holding Jacob tightly against his body and the little boy was struggling silently against his father's firm grip. John seemed completely unaware of the distress he was causing his son until Scott slid himself onto the bed and gently pried him from John's arms. He passed the boy to Jeff, waited for him to start heading out of the door with Jacob and then pulled a shaking John closely against his chest.

John wrapped his arms tightly around Scott's waist, buried his head in his brother's shirt and let out a hoarse cry. Scott folded himself around him and clung on tight, murmuring quietly in an attempt to try and calm him down.

~#~

John continued to cry for several minutes and then tried, unsuccessfully, to pull away from his brother. Scott let him go so far as sitting upright but continued to hold onto his arm to ground him. "Why, John?" he asked softly. "Why in God's name did you try and go through this lot on your own?"

John raised a shaky hand up to his face and scrubbed at his right eye. He then looked blearily across at Scott and shrugged.

"Oookay," Scott continued, using the same quiet tone of voice. "Well, at least tell me you haven't been sitting in here with all this since I knocked at half past three."

John looked across at the paperwork which was strewn across his bed and then shook his head.

Scott raised an eyebrow. "Quarter to four?" he asked. "Four o'clock? Four fifteen?"

John let out a strangled chuckle and punched Scott, hard, on the arm. "Something like that," he said vaguely. "He..." John pulled himself roughly out of Scott's grip and looked frantically around the room. "Scott, where is he? What the hell did you do with him?"

Scott gently grabbed both of John's arms and pressed him back against the wall. "Dad's got him," he replied. "Jesus, Johnny, you really were out of it for a while there, weren't you?"

John relaxed as soon as he realised that Jacob was safe. "Was I?" he asked. "I don't…um…" He stopped and looked at his watch. "Wow. Um…yeah. I guess I may have lost…um…a fair chunk of the night. I'm not…I'm not entirely sure what happened."

"Emotional overload," Jeff replied quietly from the doorway. He stepped slowly into the room and held out a glass of water and a couple of tablets.

John took the glass and looked dubiously at the tablets in Jeff's outstretched hand.

Jeff chuckled and then picked up John's hand and placed the tablets against his palm. "They're only Tylenol," he explained. "…for the headache that you're about to get...if you haven't got it already."

John frowned for a moment and then he silently slipped the two tablets into his mouth and washed them down with a sip of water. The instant the liquid hit his tongue it made him realise that he was incredibly thirsty. He quickly downed the rest of the water before handing the glass back to Jeff who put it gently down on the top of the bedside table.

"Dad, where's Jacob?" John asked after a moment. "Is he alright? I didn't hurt him, did I?"

Jeff picked several books up off the bed and put them next to the glass on the bedside table. He then sat down gently on the space he'd cleared and turned to face John. "Jacob's fine," he replied softly. "He's with Gordon. I had to wait for him to get out of the pool and get at least partly dry before he could take him. That's why it took me a while to get myself back in here. I see you decided to do a little late-night reading. Would it not have been better to wait until there was someone here to support you?"

Scott snorted as John rolled his eyes and reached under his pillow for a tissue. He blew his nose, shoved the tissue in the pocket of his pyjama trousers and then turned back to the others. "As I had started to say to Scott before you came in…Jacob had a disturbed night. He went off well when it came to actually going to bed but he must have been up seven or eight times between a quarter to three and about…um…four o'clock. He'd seem to drop off so I'd put him down then within five or ten minutes he'd be back up again. I don't really know if he was truly going to sleep but something was bothering him and he couldn't settle. Eventually I gave up trying to put him down and sat here with him so he'd stay asleep. I was…well…buzzing, I suppose that's as good a word as any. I'd been disturbed so many times in the space of less than a couple of hours that there was no way I was going to get back to sleep. For some reason I decided that I should take the opportunity to look through these damn boxes. I don't know why though, maybe my sleep-deprived mind wasn't firing on all cylinders…it just seemed like a good thing to do in a quiet moment while Jacob was asleep and completely oblivious to what I was doing."

Jeff smiled sadly and shook his head. "I suppose that's understandable, in a way. You do realise that neither me nor your brother would have minded coming in to sit with you, John? Even in the middle of the night…or the early hours of the morning, as it was. Jacob may not have disturbed me last night but you could have come and got me if you needed to. Scott told me he came and knocked but you turned him away. Didn't you want his support? Did you really think you needed to do this alone?"

John shrugged and then slumped against Scott who had to shift further up the bed to support his brother's weight. "I don't know," he said quietly. "I didn't think I was doing too badly when Scott knocked. Sure, I'd been up and down for the best part of three quarters of an hour but I had no reason to think that Jacob wouldn't go back down eventually. It's not like it's a frequent problem to get him back to sleep at the moment, not like the nights we had when we first got him back here. He's been so good for the past couple of weeks that…I don't know, maybe I'd been lulled into a false sense of security or something. Anyway, I honestly hadn't even thought about looking through any of this…" John waved his hand across the bed. "…when you knocked, Scott."

Scott nodded and then gently wrapped an arm around John's shoulders. "I believe you," he said softly. "…but really, you know I wouldn't have minded taking him for you, if you'd just wanted to get a bit of shut eye."

John bobbed his head and snuggled closer against his brother. "I know," he replied. "But I'm also aware that Jacob's my responsibility. I know you…both of you, as well as Grandma, Gordon and Tin-Tin…I know you all want to help but that doesn't mean that I'm going to just absolve myself of all responsibility of him and hand him over each time he gets difficult. I know that none of you would mind sitting up all night with him so that I could get some sleep but none of you would honestly be able to say it was fair of me if I let you do that. He's my responsibility, even if certain people…" John leaned forwards, grabbed a large, floral-patterned book and threw it into Jeff's lap. "…couldn't, wouldn't or shouldn't agree with that."

John hitched his knees back up in front of himself and sunk back into Scott's embrace while Jeff glanced down at the book. He tentatively opened it and it soon became clear that he was looking at some sort of a diary. Its pages were filled with swirly, feminine writing and as Jeff flicked through it he discovered that tickets, stickers and post-its had been slipped between virtually every sheet.

He rested the book on his knee and looked across at John who nodded. "You know the relevant dates," he whispered. "So I think you can guess where…or rather when you need to start looking."

Jeff closed the book and turned it over to look at the cover. He shrugged briefly and then opened it about half way through and started skimming.

~#~

It was obvious to both John and Scott when Jeff reached the relevant page. He read quietly for several minutes and then looked up to meet John's sorrowful gaze. "I think," he said quietly. "…that it's safe to say that Rosie had some rather serious issues. Whereas it's obvious, from the little I've read here, that she had them before catching for Jacob, they evidently multiplied exponentially once the pregnancy hormones kicked in. John, is there a book to follow this one?"

John nodded, uncurled himself and then reached down to pick a matching pair of books up off the floor on the far side of his bed. He opened the top one, rifled through the pages until he found what he wanted and then handed both books to Jeff before tucking himself back under Scott's arm.

Jeff took the second book and smiled sadly down at the ultrasound scan which had been taped onto the open page. He lifted the book up to his face and peered at the tiny writing printed at the top. "The day before he was born," he murmured. "Why were they scanning her so close to her due date?"

John leaned forwards again and flicked back a couple of pages to where a plane ticket was stapled. "She flew, Dad. She flew into Tasmania at thirty eight and a half weeks pregnant. She wore baggy clothes to disguise the fact she was expecting and she flew and it made her ill…so ill that less than twenty four hours after landing she was holed up at that damn refuge. She'd only been in Tasmania for thirty seven hours by the time Jacob was born."

Scott gave John a gentle shake. "Don't start getting all worked up again," he said softly. "It was never going to be easy finding these things out but making yourself sick's not going to do anyone any good, now is it?"

John pinched his nose and sucked a deep breath in through his mouth. "No," he hissed. "…but she's got me so mad. She didn't seem to care one jot that she could have killed Jacob through her irresponsible actions. Rules about pregnant women flying are there for a reason. They're not there just to restrict people's movements unnecessarily, they're there to protect the woman and, more than that, they're there to protect her unborn child. Rosie didn't give a damn about all that; she lied and cheated her way onto that plane and she's probably lucky she didn't kill both herself and Jacob in the process."

Scott jumped slightly when John slammed his fist hard against his leg. He swung his arm back in preparation to do it again so Scott reached across with his fee hand and clamped the arm tight against John's torso. "No, you don't," he hissed. "I'm not going to let you hurt yourself. It's not necessary and it's God damn stupid so you, just stop it. Right now."

John wriggled in an attempt to free himself and let out a frustrated cry when he realised that Scott had him completely immobilised.

~#~

Scott held on for a few moments longer until the tension suddenly dissolved from John's shoulders. Not long after that John's weight was once again resting heavily against Scott's side and the elder brother felt safe enough to release his arms, although he left the comforting arm hanging loosely around John's shoulders.

John looked bashfully up at him once he was free. "Thanks," he whispered. "…and sorry. I may have…um…lost it a little there. Sorry…and sorry to you too, Dad."

Jeff smiled sadly. "That's quite alright," he replied with a gentle nod of his head. "…although you may do well not to demonstrate this new, rancorous side of your personality to your youngest brothers. I'd hate to see the pair of them joining together to see just how far they have to push you before you explode."

"A heck of a lot less distance than pre-Jacob John," Scott said with a smirk. "It wasn't worth them trying it on before. It was no fun to them 'cos you just didn't bite…ever."

John flushed red. He opened his mouth to speak and then closed it with a snap without uttering a sound. He looked from Scott, to John and then back to Scott again. "What do we do now?" he asked quietly.

Scott looked at Jeff who picked up the books and then motioned to John to pass him the third one. "It's up to you," he replied. "Either you, me, Scott or a combination of the three of us can take a proper look through these. If you don't feel up to it then Scott and I can go through them for you and, if you want, we can talk you through the pertinent points. If you'd rather not know at all then that's fine as well but I really think that at least one of us should know exactly what was going through that young lady's mind at what was obviously such a troubling time of her life. I know it won't make any physical difference to know what went on now but you, John, you'll want to know what happened and Jacob will have the right to know as well…once he's old enough, of course."

John nodded and then shook himself and shrugged. "Alright," he murmured. "That sounds like some sort of a plan. I should warn you though, there's another pile of books in another one of the boxes. It seems that Rosie had been keeping these diary things for years, although she seems to have been a little more…um…overzealous with these three than the others, as far as I can tell. I kind of think that someone…and no, before you ask, I'm not volunteering to do it myself…but someone probably should go through those as well. Is that an invasion of privacy or…" John shrugged again. "I don't know but I think someone maybe needs to know what's in them."

Jeff looked at Scott who nodded slightly. "We can do that," he replied. "Although I think that our priority for now should be these three. They're obviously going to be the most relevant at the moment, the others, well maybe we'll need them as backup or confirmation of things in these. You're bound to appear in these to some extent, John and I want to know that you're absolutely sure about us going through them before we start. John, you're certain you want the pair of us to go through them without you?"

John nodded. "Absolutely certain," he replied, picking a word out of each of Jeff's last two sentences. "…and yes, I'm definitely in there, I've already read some…um…interesting facts about myself."


	91. Chapter 91

~#~ (Chapter 91)

John was living on tenterhooks for the next few days but he found himself gradually relaxing when neither Jeff nor Scott showed any outward signs that they were reading through the diaries. Very occasionally he would notice Scott with one of them but his brother was careful to hide it away whenever he became aware that John was nearby.

~#~

A particularly gruelling couple of weeks followed with several back to back rescues, the last of which culminated in Scott being knocked out cold by flying debris while manning the supposedly-safe piece of machinery known as Mobile Control.

Jeff had practically emptied the island in an attempt to help as many people as possible in the densely-populated Russian city that had been at the epicentre of a massive earthquake. Many of the buildings, along with their unfortunate inhabitants, had simply disappeared down a huge chasm that ripped its way through the east side of the residential district and when Scott flew overhead to reconnoitre he reported back that there was no sign of any official rescue services.

Virgil, Gordon, Alan, Tin-Tin and Brains all followed closely behind Scott in Thunderbird 2. John, who was manning 5b to allow Alan to go out, made contact with the local emergency services and by the time Scott landed there was a vaguely-organised group of policemen waiting for him.

In an uncharacteristic move, Scott opted to position Mobile Control against the substantial-looking wall of the deserted town hall, rather than tucking it into its more usual spot beneath Thunderbird 1. Unfortunately for Scott, the wall proved not to be as solid as he'd originally thought and when a large aftershock hit the town several hours later, it brought the wall down on top of Mobile Control.

Fortunately Gordon had been on his way to collect some more cutting gear from Thunderbird 1. He had seen the wall begin to wobble and had screamed for Scott to get out of the way. Scott reacted instinctively to Gordon's cry and launched himself up and over the front of Mobile Control a split second before the bulk of the building came tumbling down on top of it.

Scott, Mobile Control and several nearby buildings disappeared into a cloud of dust, bricks and flying glass. Gordon slapped his watch, yelled at Virgil, grabbed some breathing gear from the back of his hoverbike and strode towards the pile of rubble that had, just moments before, been the town hall.

"Scott," he shouted. "Yell out then I can tell where you are. Can you hear me? Shout out so I can come and get you. SCOTTY!"

Gordon startled badly when his watch let out an ear-splitting screech and then swore. There was a hiss, a loud pop and then, suddenly, it all went quiet and Virgil's voice came clearly through the little device. "I'm sorry but it's going to have to be up to you, Gordon. Alan's practically on the other side of town and there's no way that Brains, Tin-Tin or myself can move from here. That shock just undid everything we've been trying to do for the last twenty minutes and we've still got sixteen frightened kids trapped beneath us. You're just going to have to get Scott out by yourself. Sorry Gordon, I've got to go. Virgil out."

"Gee thanks," Gordon murmured. "I guess I'll let you know when I find him then. John? Please tell me you're still there."

"I'm here, Gordy," John replied quietly as he appeared on the little screen on Gordon's watch. "…and I can see you all on the scanners. Scott's fifteen or so paces in front of you and about twelve to the right. He's alive but I don't think he's doing all that well. If you can't hear him then I'd guess that he's unconscious rather than pinned because he hasn't moved since the building went down."

Gordon breathed out a sigh of relief and started scrambling across the debris-covered area in the direction that John had suggested.

Absorbed as he was in retaining his footing, Gordon didn't realise he'd covered as much space as he had until John yelled at him to stop. Gordon stopped immediately and soon realised that he was standing within feet of the crushed red remains of Mobile Control. He looked briefly around and then panicked. "Where is he, John? I can't see any sign of him. Where is he?"

John sighed softly. "Calm down, Gordy. Scott's still exactly where he was, I just didn't want to risk you standing on him if you couldn't see him. He's a little in front of you but another four paces or so to the right. If you can't see him then he must be covered by something. He's right there, Gordy, honest he is."

Gordon didn't move but looked to his right. "There's a whole heap of rubble there," he whispered. "You're definitely sure he's alive underneath all that?"

John nodded and then realised that Gordon wasn't looking at him. "He's alive," he confirmed. "…and it's up to you to keep him that way. Come on, Gordy, don't lose it now. Not when Scott's counting on you."

Gordon nodded vaguely and then sidestepped over a pile of rubble which lay between him and the spot where John said that Scott was lying. "Boot," he said suddenly. "John, I can see a boot. He's…oh…I think he's sort of wedged between a chunk of building and what's left of the side of Mobile Control. I…I'm going back to get a jack. I can't get to him until I move some of this junk and I can't do that without a jack. Can you keep your eye on him while I go back to One?"

John realised that Gordon was looking at him this time so nodded in reply. "I'll let you know if anything changes. Dad's got Kyrano and Onaha setting up the infirmary as we speak. As long as Scott's not too injured then Dad'll probably want you to bring him back in One before flying back out there again. If his injuries turn out to be more…um…critical…well, I'd imagine you'll be heading for London or maybe Germany…or Moscow if you think he might not make it as far as Europe."

Gordon shuddered and charged across the town square towards Thunderbird 1. "This is Scott we're talking about," he grumbled. "It's never going to be simple."

~#~

John kept a constant, murmured conversation going with Gordon while keeping an eye on the immobile form of Scott. He was also quietly monitoring Alan, Brains, Tin-Tin and Virgil and silently cheered when he heard Virgil report that they had broken through into the area where the children were trapped. The next report said that there were multiple broken bones among the youngsters and their school teacher was clearly worse for wear but overall it couldn't be counted as anything less than a success.

John tuned out the others and turned his full concentration back onto Gordon and Scott. The red-headed aquanaut had run back to Thunderbird 1, grabbed a lightweight pair of hydraulic jacks and then for good measure also picked up a heavy-duty cutting tool. He dropped everything onto One's last remaining hoversled, added a stretcher to the top and then towed the whole thing back to where Scott was trapped.

"How are you doing, Gordon?" John asked quietly. "There's no change in Scott as far as I can tell from here and I thought you'd like to know that the others got the kids out alright. No fatalities but the teacher's in a bit of a state. It seems she threw herself over a couple of the younger children to protect them when the building started shaking. They're ferrying everyone to hospital in Two and then Virgil should be coming to find you."

Gordon lifted his arm so he could look John in the eye. "With any luck I'll be long gone by then. I'm about to try the jacks." He looked apprehensively across at the pile of rubble that was teetering above his brother. "Wish me luck," he whispered. "I think I'm going to need it."

"Good luck," John murmured softly. "I'll keep everything muted for you so you won't be disturbed." John waited for Gordon's nod of acknowledgement. "I'm signing off for now," he whispered. "Catch you on the flip side, Little Fish."

~#~

John's picture faded from the watch and Gordon suddenly felt totally alone. The ragtag bunch of policemen who had greeted Scott when he landed had long-since been sent away to help with the rescue effort. The buildings around the square had been evacuated and any remaining people had been either sent home or to the large indoor arena on the outskirts of town. Gordon looked around and realised that before he'd wandered back into the square, Scott had been completely on his own with just his bird and his large red control console for company.

Gordon looked across the square to where Thunderbird 1 sat quietly on a large patch of grass. Thankful that Scott had thought to put her well away from any of the buildings, he paused and contemplated the day's proceedings for a moment. The square had been the logical place to set up Mobile Control but it had meant that Scott was working far more remotely from the others than he normally would have done. This in itself wasn't a bad thing but ultimately it had meant that Scott had been pretty much unprotected from the unstoppable forces of nature. If Gordon hadn't needed the cutting gear from One then he wouldn't have been in the square at the right time to warm his brother about the impending building collapse.

Gordon looked over his shoulder at Mobile Control and shuddered. If he hadn't needed the cutting gear then Scott would have still been standing behind the control console when the building came down and he would have undoubtedly been instantly crushed along with his equipment. As it was he seemed to just be very firmly pinned between the remains of the town hall and the remains of Mobile Control.

~#~

Gordon squared his shoulders and picked up the first of the two jacks. He walked around the pile of rubble, crouched down beside the remnants of Mobile Control and slipped the jack under the rubble as close to Scott's boot as he dared. The fact that his brother had shown no sign of life was worrying Gordon but John had confirmed that Scott was alive, albeit unconscious, beneath the rubble. Despite the fact that John was in silent mode, Gordon knew that he'd soon make contact if Scott's status changed in any way.

He inched the jack up slightly and paused. There was no adverse reaction from Scott or the piece of wall so Gordon wound the jack up a little further and then lay flat on his stomach and wriggled his arm into the gap that he'd created between Scott's leg and the debris that was now hovering above it. He reached up past the top of Scott's boot until his fingertips made contact with the back of his brother's knee; he then held his breath and gently probed the area until he could feel the slow but steady rhythm of Scott's heart.

Gordon rested there for a moment, revelling in the contact with the small but telling sign of life within Scott. It wasn't that he hadn't believed John when he'd told him that their brother was alive but more that he needed to be able to verify it for himself.

He pulled his arm back out of the hole and scrambled up until he was crouching beside the jack. "Right, Scotty," he murmured. "Let's see what we can do about getting you out from under there now that I have proof that you're still with us."

Ever so slowly, Gordon wound up the jack. Each time he raised it he checked that the section of wall was moving up evenly away from Scott and that it was still being firmly supported where it was pressed against Mobile Control.

After a couple more tiny increases in height, Gordon discovered that he had created enough space to insert the second jack up near Scott's chest. He slid the jack as far up Scott's body as possible and linked the two hydraulic devices together. This meant that any adjustments Gordon made to the original jack would be immediately duplicated by its partner.

Slowly but surely Gordon raised the piece of wall up away from his brother. He kept a close eye on Scott the whole time but the eldest Tracy boy remained quiet and still throughout the entire operation.

~#~

Once the jacks had reached their full height there was enough space under the fallen wall for Gordon to slide himself in next to Scott. He braced the wall with some large chunks of masonry and then grabbed a medical bag and scanner and wriggled his way in beside his brother.

Scott had been lying almost flat on his front when the town hall had made its untimely tumble on top of him. Gordon breathed out a loud sigh of relief when the scanner showed that Scott's neck and back were clear of damage, he then set about checking for other injuries.

He discovered that Scott had fallen onto his left arm and as a result the arm was badly twisted at the elbow. Under the overhanging wall, Gordon was unable to ascertain whether it was broken or not so he settled for gently teasing it out from beneath Scott's body and lying it gently by his side. Scott had an impressive set of bumps, cuts and scuffs but other than his arm the only other real problem that Gordon could find was the twin lumps on his head.

Gordon couldn't tell whether Scott's head had hit the floor before the wall had fallen on him but his brother had goose-eggs on both the front and back of his head. The one in his scalp at the back had split open and by the time Gordon got to him, Scott's hair was plastered in partially-congealed blood, grit, gravel, sand and bits of pulverised wall. The lump on his right temple was unbroken but no less impressive, containing its own quota of Scott's blood, displayed in a multitude of coloured circles radiating out from the point of impact with the floor.

~#~

Gordon ran detailed scans on both the lumps on Scott's head and then reactivated his watch to make contact with John and, by default, Jeff. He reported back that Scott had no obvious life-threatening injuries and that the pair of them would be heading back to Tracy Island just as soon as Gordon could safely transfer his brother onto a stretcher and load him into Thunderbird 1.

Jeff confirmed that Onaha had the infirmary prepped and ready for their arrival but expressed his concern at bringing Scott back to the island with a head injury when Brains wasn't available. Gordon sent the scanner results to John who forwarded them upstairs so that Jeff could read them. Both brothers fought for bringing Scott straight back home and pointed out that Scott would be far happier at home than stuck in a hospital somewhere in Europe.

Jeff took a long look at the details from the scanner and reluctantly agreed. "All right, I give up. Bring him home. It'll be obvious soon enough if he needs more treatment than Onaha can provide. If it comes to it then I'll fly him over to the mainland myself."

Gordon raised his eyebrows slightly and then nodded. "I just need a few minutes to get him comfortable and then I'll be on my way. I would have preferred either Virgil or Brains to take a look at him before I strap him into One but I guess that's not going to happen. He's still completely out of it but on the other hand that maybe for the best seeing as how he so loves being a passenger in his own rocket-plane."

Jeff chuckled. "Just get your brother and yourself back here in one piece. If Scott wakes up en route and starts arguing about who's flying then at least we'll know that he's OK. Whatever happens though, Gordon, don't let him try and fly."

Gordon shook his head. "No sir," he replied quietly. "Even if he does wake up, he's still only going to have one useable arm. I don't think even Scott would try and fly one-handed."

~#~

Gordon got Scott loaded onto the stretcher, strapped him down and then manhandled the whole thing onto the hoversled. He pushed the hoversled out of the way so he could get to the jacks that were holding up the fallen wall and lowered them both so that Mobile Control was almost completely obscured from view. He had a last look round to check that nothing particularly obvious or revealing was on show and then walked towards One with Scott's hoversled in tow.

With a gently bit of manipulation, Gordon managed to get the sled, stretcher and Scott all safely into the cockpit of Thunderbird 1. He slid the stretcher off the sled and secured it to the purpose-built anchorage points on the rear bulkhead of the cockpit. He dropped the hoversled back out of the entrance hatch, knowing that it would neither hit the floor nor break and then pulled a blanket from one of the overhead compartments and spread it out over Scott, tucking it beneath his brother's body in strategic places so that it would remain in place once Thunderbird 1 took off.

Gordon dropped back down to the ground and stowed the hoversled in its usual spot in One's compact cargo hold. He looked around in the vain hope that Virgil might appear and then shook his head, climbed back aboard One and started her engines.


	92. Chapter 92

~#~ (Chapter 92)

One had got less than fifteen feet off the ground when Virgil shot into the square on his hoverbike. He called out to Gordon via his watch and winced when his brother overreacted by immediately cutting all the power to One's powerful VTOL jets.

One dropped like a stone, bounced heavily on the grass and then remained mercifully still. Virgil sent his hoverbike shooting towards the large rocket-plane and was met at the pilot's hatch by a quivering Gordon. "Not your fault," he said quietly as he reached out and rested a calming hand on Gordon's shoulder. "I should have told you I was nearly here then you wouldn't have tried to take off in the first place."

Gordon let out a shaky nod. "Why didn't you do that, anyway?" he asked. "I…I…Scott's going to kill me if he finds out what I just did. Did I hurt her? Are her legs alright?"

Virgil squeezed the shoulder he was holding. "She's tough," he replied quietly. "…and you dropped her on grass, which, if you had to drop her on something would probably be one of the more…um…preferable surfaces. I hope, for your sake though, that Scott never hears exactly how or why you dropped her; he'll never let you out in her again if he knows you just shut everything down mid-take-off."

Gordon shuddered again. "I just wanted you to look at him," he croaked. "I wanted you to look at him before I moved him in the first place but now I just want you to tell me that he's going to be alright and that I haven't hurt him worse than he already was. I still don't know what's wrong with his arm. It's not broken…at least not as far as I can tell but it's kind of floppy so something's not right with it. He hasn't woken up at all since before I got the lump of building off of him and a quiet Scott's not a good Scott. I'd almost prefer him to be bawling me out for dropping One like that…at least it'd mean that he was OK."

Virgil looked around to check no-one was watching and pulled Gordon into a gentle hug. "Shh," he murmured. "Don't start fretting now. You've done great here today. You got Scott out from…" Virgil made the mistake of glancing over at the area where the town hall had once stood. "Jesus, you weren't kidding when you said the whole thing had come down on top of him." Virgil let out a shudder and then held Gordon out at arm's length and looked him directly in the eye. "You got Scott out, completely on your own. You treated him, patched him up and got him all ready for transport. What say you let me give him a once-over and then we'll go home?"

Gordon shook his head. "You're supposed to stay here," he replied. "Dad wants me to take Scott home and then come back here to help. You were supposed to check Scott over if you got here before I left and then you were supposed to go back to the others. I think Dad would have rather had Brains back at home waiting for Scott but obviously he's here as well so there's only Onaha at home to care for him."

Virgil growled low in his throat. "Stuff Dad," he said harshly. "As medic I can overrule him and there's nothing he can say or do about it. No offence, Gordy, but do you really think you're capable of flying One, safely, all the way home after what you've done this morning and after the shock you just gave yourself? Honestly?"

Gordon wrapped his arms around himself and glanced up at One. He looked from the rocket-plane to the wreck of the town hall, back to One and then turned his gaze onto Virgil and shook his head.

"No, I didn't think so," Virgil murmured softly. "Let me take a look at Scott and then I'm flying the three of us home. The others know what they're doing and they'll be fine without us for a bit. Brains and Tin-Tin are working together and Alan's doing a great job at coordinating his newly-formed rescue team of sports-academy students. The Red Cross are on their way with food, water and temporary shelters for any and all survivors and as long as the aftershocks hold off then we'll be clearing out at dusk anyway. Brains is more than capable of taking Two home and I'm sure that Tin-Tin and Alan could probably also manage it, at a push, despite not having that much practice. My priorities now are you and Scott. Alan. Tin-Tin, Brains and Two will be fine here until then. Got it?"

Gordon hugged himself tighter and stared upwards into the hatch to where he knew Scott was secured. Virgil reached out again and spun him around until he was facing the ladder up to One's cockpit. "Climb," he said softly. "I'm going to stash my hoverbike and then I'll be with you."

Gordon clambered up the ladder and into the cockpit. He sat on the floor beside Scott, checked the bandage on the back of his head for any sign of leakage and then sat and waited for Virgil, with his fingertips resting gently against the pulse-point on Scott's wrist.

~#~

When Virgil climbed up into the cockpit, just a few minutes later, he found Gordon dozing on the floor beside his brother. The adrenalin that had been sustaining the aquanaut while he'd been single-handedly rescuing Scott had started to drain away once Virgil had appeared and taken charge of the situation and as soon as he'd sat down and relaxed slightly, Gordon's body had seized the opportunity and shut itself down.

By the positioning of Gordon's hands it was obvious that he'd been checking on Scott when he fell asleep. Virgil looked down at him and sighed quietly to himself before crouching down beside Gordon and giving his arm a gentle shake. "Come on, big guy. The floor's not a good place to sleep and you'll get stiff if you don't move soon."

Gordon looked up at him with his eyes at half-mast. "Wha?" he muttered and then made a grab for Scott's arm when he realised that he'd dropped it when he'd fallen asleep. "Virg? You OK?"

Virgil rolled his eyes and nodded. He reached down, pulled Gordon gently to his feet and then manhandled him the short distance to Thunderbird 1's foldaway passenger seats. He pressed him gently down into the seat nearest to Scott's stretcher, held him steady and then buckled him in.

Gordon sat quietly in the chair with a confused expression on his face until Virgil laid a soft, warm blanket across his knees. The red-head grabbed the blanket, pulled it up to his shoulders and then peered around Virgil to check that Scott was still alright.

Once he was happy that Scott was still where he'd left him, Gordon snuggled deeply into the blanket with a contented sigh. Virgil smiled and then leant down and ruffled his hair. "Go back to sleep," he murmured. "…and I'll wake you when we get back."

~#~

Virgil sat with Gordon for a couple of minutes until the aquanaut had properly settled. He rested his hand on his brother's head for a moment, sighed softly and then stepped across the cabin to check on Scott.

Apart from still being unconscious, Scott was in better shape than Virgil had imagined. His head was heavily bandaged and Gordon had left the cervical collar on him for safekeeping but a quick glimpse at the medical scanner told Virgil that it was unnecessary. He leaned down, unclipped the plastic clips holding the collar on and secured it to the base of the stretcher. "That's better," he murmured. "You'll be much more comfortable without that on. I fully expect you to be awake and yelling at me before we get home because you're definitely going to be pissed about me flying your bird. You're not going to be happy about being strapped down and I'm not going to make things worse by making you completely uncomfortable as well. OK?"

Scott remained silent but Virgil nodded as if his brother had replied. "Good," he said with a tight smile. "I'll be hearing from you soon then. I've got a plane to fly and a soon-to-be-irate commander to pacify. Wake up and be yourself before we get home, Scotty. I don't really want to face Dad on my own."

~#~

Virgil ran a scan on Thunderbird 1's systems to make sure that Gordon's overly-hasty landing hadn't caused any obvious problems with the mechanics of the rocket-plane. Once he was confident that all was well, he cast a last glimpse over his shoulder at his two sleeping brothers and then fired up the engines.

Virgil set a course northwards towards the Barents Sea and raised the ship to optimum cruising height. He remained on alert until all he could see was clear water for miles around. He glimpsed around at Gordon and Scott and breathed a heavy sigh. "Thunderbird 1 to base, this is Virgil, are you receiving me?"

There was a brief delay before Jeff replied. "Receiving you, loud and clear Virgil. I was going to ask what you're doing in Thunderbird 1 but I'm assuming that you're heading home, from the fact that you appear to be heading for the North Atlantic at a tremendous rate of knots. I thought the plan was for Gordon to bring Scott straight back here. You were apparently tied up with the children and were therefore unavailable. Is there a particular reason you overrode me and swapped with Gordon?"

Virgil winced and then risked another glance behind him. "I…um…haven't swapped with Gordon, Father. He's here with me but he's sleeping. I'll debrief you fully when we get back but for now it's suffice to say that he coped fantastically under pressure, got Scott out from under the rubble, patched him up, secured him and got him loaded into One ready for transport. I promise I'll explain everything properly when I get home. OK?"

Jeff frowned slightly. "Alright," he agreed. "I guess that will be sufficient for now. Did you have a chance to take a look at Scott before you set off? How did he look?"

Virgil rocked his head from side to side for a moment. "He's going to have some spectacular bruising but he's surprisingly sound, if you take into account what he's just been through. Gordon expressed some concern about his left arm and he'd left the cervical collar on him, although I'm not one hundred percent sure why. The arm's badly wrenched and I'd hazard a guess that either the shoulder, elbow or both have been at least partially dislocated at some point today. It's swollen and not entirely responding how I'd like but with Scott still being completely out of it it's a little difficult to assess. I've taken the collar off him mainly to cut out a bit of the swearing if he wakes up before we get back but I've had to leave him strapped down though so he doesn't roll off the stretcher while we're heading back."

Jeff nodded thoughtfully. "It sounds like you've got it all under control," he replied with a gentle smile. "Onaha has a bed ready for Scott but you haven't told me whether I need to ask her to prepare another for Gordon. Other than being 'asleep', you haven't really said anything about what's wrong with him. I know I'd agreed for him to fly Scott back here but I wasn't altogether happy with the idea that neither yourself not Brains was going to be here for him and I have to admit, Virgil, that I'm happier knowing that you'll be coming back to keep an eye on them both."

Virgil gave Jeff a tight smile and then let out a soft sigh. "They're both going to be fine, Dad. Scott's going to need a bit of time to recuperate and he'll be back to his frustrating-and-refusing-to-stay-in-bed self before you know it. Gordy…well, he probably overdid it a bit earlier and then crashed out when he ran out of adrenaline. He'd have got back safely if I hadn't shown up though, I'm certain of it."

Jeff nodded again. "I know," he replied quietly. "He can do amazing things under stress, sometimes at the detriment of his own health. The five of you are identical in that respect."

Virgil smiled to himself. "We try," he said wryly. "If nothing else then it keeps you on your toes." There was a slight rustling noise from behind Virgil and he craned his neck around so he could see Scott. "I've got to go, Dad. I have a feeling it's going to get mighty noisy in here very, very soon."

Jeff chuckled. "Good luck, Son. Kyrano and I will meet you in the silo when you get back then we can give you a hand with the other two. Fly carefully and I'll see you soon."

~#~

There was a gradual increase in the rustling from where Scott was lying. After a few minutes the rustling was accompanied by quiet mutterings and eventually Scott let out a soft curse and called out for Virgil.

Virgil lowered Thunderbird 1 down as close to the ocean surface as he dared and then locked off the controls so that the rocket-plane sat hovering just ten feet above the gentle swell of the waves. He scrambled out of the pilot's chair and hurried over to where Scott was struggling weakly against the restraints holding him to the stretcher.

Virgil dropped to the floor beside his brother and captured Scott's right hand. "Pack it in," he hissed. "You're strapped in there for a reason. Oh, and keep quiet, unless you're deliberately trying to disturb Gordon?"

Scott raised his head as far as he could and looked in the direction that Virgil had pointed. Despite being buckled tightly into his seat, Gordon had managed to kick off his boots and tuck his legs up underneath himself. He was snuggled up comfortably beneath the blanket with his hands, wrapped in the soft material, curled tightly beneath his chin.

"S'he alright?" Scott slurred slightly. "Why s'e sleep?"

Virgil smiled to himself and gently squeezed Scott's hand. "What's the last thing you remember?" he asked. "Before waking up just now, I mean."

Scott frowned and was silent for so long that Virgil had to check that he hadn't fallen asleep. "Scotty? What's the last thing you remember about today?"

"Aftershock," Scott replied softly. "Gords yelled at me, I moved and then…wait…no, that's it. There's nothing after that."

Virgil nodded. "It's about what I'd expect. Basically, you got the town hall down on your head. Mobile Control…well, Mobile Control will never be the same again but that great hunk of machine saved your life, Scotty. If Brains hadn't built it so strong then the wall would have pancaked both it and yourself as well. As it was you managed to get wedged between the side of Mobile Control and a great huge slab of wall. Gordon had to jack up the wall, inch by inch, until he had enough space to get a stretcher in beside you and get you out. Dad had ordered him to get you back to the island ASAP and he was just about to take off and go when I got there. There's nothing physically wrong with him, Scotty, he's just absolutely shattered."

"OK," Scott whispered. "…as long as that's all it is. What happened to me?"

Virgil frowned. "The town hall," he said worriedly. "We just discussed that, didn't we? Don't you remember?"

Scott chuckled dryly. "'s not what I meant," he replied. "What did it do to me? Apart from giving me a hangover worse than Ricky Sheen's stag do?"

It was Virgil's turn to chuckle. "You had me worried for a minute there, Scotty," he admitted. "You've been unconscious for hours. You've got a real good knock here," Virgil raised his hand to hover over Scott's right temple. "…and another one which is an open, bleeding mess at the back. I haven't seen that one but Gordon filled me in on just what state your head's in underneath your bandages."

Scott grimaced. "Great," he complained. "Like I don't have enough scars back there already." He rolled his head to the side and then frowned. "You're not going to let me up, are you?"

Virgil smiled and then shook his head. "No," he replied. "I'm flying back and I don't need you, in full on grump mode, flying shotgun. You're staying right there and the only thing you're allowed to do is watch Gordon. I don't expect him to move, or get into much trouble over there, but unfortunately these things happen, so you have to watch him for me. OK? I need to get back to the controls now or we're never going to get home. You know where I'll be. Shout me if you need me."

Scott rolled his head as far to the right as he could until he collided with Virgil's arm. "OK," he whispered. "But can you get me a drink before you go? I feel like I've been trying to drink the Sahara."


	93. Chapter 93

~#~ (Chapter 93)

Gordon was eventually woken by Virgil asking for clearance to land on the island. He looked blearily around and smiled when he realised that Scott was awake and watching him. He nodded briefly in Scott's direction and then pulled the blanket back up against his chin and waited quietly while Virgil got Thunderbird 1 back down into her silo and then safely up into her hangar below the house.

~#~

Jeff and Kyrano were waiting in the hangar when Virgil appeared, towing Scott's floating stretcher behind him. They handed the end of the stretcher over to Kyrano and then stepped aside so that Jeff could look over Scott and assure himself that his eldest son wasn't too badly hurt.

After a moment, Virgil realised that Gordon hadn't followed him out of Thunderbird 1. He wandered slowly back inside so as not to disturb Gordon in case he had fallen back to sleep. As he rounded the last corner he was startled to find his brother standing, still wrapped in the blanket, just inside the door.

"You planning on staying in here all day?" he asked softly. "I thought you might want to come to the infirmary with me so you can help get Scott settled."

Gordon shook his head and then shrugged. "Have you told Dad?" he whispered. "…about what I did? Is he mad?"

Virgil shook his head this time. "No," he replied. "Did you seriously think I'd tell him while there was even the vaguest chance of Scott overhearing? Give me a little credit, Gordon; I'm not completely stupid."

This brought a chuckle from Gordon who wrapped the blanket tighter around himself. "You're going to have to tell him though," he pointed out. "…and he'll tell Scott who will beat me to a pulp and never let me near anything bigger than Four ever again."

Virgil snorted as he stepped forward and wrapped his arm around Gordon's shoulders. "Apart from the fact that he's been indoctrinated not to beat on any of us since the age of about two, Scott'll be hard pressed to beat _anyone_ into _anything_ in the immediate future. He's got a clipped wing, in case you've forgotten. His arm's not broken but it's been badly wrenched, sprained, dislocated or…something. Whichever of those applies, he's not going to be using it for some time. Now, come on. If we take the shortcut through the house we can still beat everyone else down to the infirmary. How about it?"

Gordon looked up and met Virgil's concerned gaze. "OK," he replied. "Let's go."

~#~

John had taken his mobile console into the infirmary and was waiting there when Gordon and Virgil walked in. He gave Gordon an appraising look which made the red-head wonder if John had somehow found out about his almost-crash-landing. John nodded knowingly and then patted one of the beds in an unspoken suggestion that Gordon might want to sit down.

Gordon shook his head and stood at the bottom of one of the beds, looking slightly lost, until Kyrano and Jeff walked in with Scott's stretcher floating between them. Onaha followed the trio with a bundle of clean blankets and very soon afterwards Scott had been transferred from the stretcher onto one of the newly-made infirmary beds.

Grandma wandered into the room with Jacob just a couple of minutes after Scott was settled. The little boy, who was wearing a sodden bib, was drooling a lot and chewing hard on his hand. Ruth had a flustered expression on her face as she bustled over to her eldest grandson. "Scott dear, you look just awful. How are you feeling? Gordon, honey, sit down before you fall down. You're as white as a sheet."

Gordon jumped as if he'd been stung. Ruth had seemingly had all her attention on Scott but without more than a cursory glance in his direction the old woman had decided he looked either unhappy or unwell. John reached out an arm to take the aquanaut from Virgil and gently pressed him down onto the bed beside Scott's. As an afterthought he leaned over and took Jacob out of Ruth's arms, he then deposited the soggy child onto Gordon's lap.

The red-head instinctively wrapped his arms around the little boy and lay back against the raised head of the bed. Jacob grumbled slightly at the disturbance and then realised where he was and who he'd been given to. His grumbling changed to a more happy sound and he snuggled up against Gordon who sighed deeply and tucked his legs up into a more comfortable position on the bed.

John watched him for a moment and then looked up at Virgil who smiled approvingly before moving across to make a start on cleaning Scott up now that both Jeff and Ruth had been given the chance to see that he was in no immediate danger.

~#~

Onaha left Virgil to care for his brother and dragged Ruth from the infirmary under the premise of needing help with the dinner. Kyrano made his excuses, bowed gently and then followed the pair from the room.

Jeff parked himself firmly on the chair in the gap between Scott and Gordon's beds and smiled softly when he noticed that Jacob had fallen asleep in Gordon's arms. Gordon's eyelids were heavy as he lay quietly, watching Virgil split the seam of Scott's flight suit open so that he could remove Scott's injured arm without causing his brother too much further pain.

Jeff shuffled closer to Gordon and began carding his fingers gently through the aquanaut's hair. Despite having slept most of the way back from Russia, the combination of shock, fear and worry conspired against Gordon and his father's gentle touch was just enough to send him back into a light doze. Jeff continued to stroke his son's hair until he was certain that Gordon sunk into a proper sleep. He then slowly lifted his hand away and smiled when John pulled a sheet up over Gordon and tucked it gently underneath Jacob's bottom to keep it in place. "I don't think we'll be seeing much of either of them for the next couple of hours," he whispered. "Virgil, don't forget you promised some explanations about things that went on earlier. I'm not talking about a full debrief, that will come when the others get back, I'd just like a few things clarified, once you're finished with Scott."

Virgil nodded as he bound Scott's arm tightly against his chest. "Not a problem," he murmured. "The others may well be on their way by then though and someone's going to have to sit in here with these two…er, three if I'm not in here. Scott's going to need to be watched for the rest of the day and probably overnight too. Gordon should be OK but I'm pretty sure he'll want to get changed and cleaned up when he wakes up and that won't be as simple as it should be with Jacob in tow."

Jeff looked back to where Gordon lay peacefully. "We can manage it between us," he replied. "If we need to talk in the office then either Kyrano, Onaha or John can sit with Scott, Gordon and Jacob but I don't mind if you want to talk in here."

Virgil winced as he looked up to meet Jeff's gaze. He inclined his eyes in Scott's direction and shrugged slightly. Jeff frowned slightly and looked from Virgil to Scott and across at John. "Will you be alright in here with that?" he asked, pointing at the mobile console. "…or will you need to go back downstairs to get everyone back here and landed safely?"

John nodded and then shook his head and shrugged before rolling his eyes. "I'll be alright here until Two's ready to take off but I'll need to be either downstairs or in your office before she gets underway. If you want to treat Virgil to a coffee when he's done in here then I'll stay put and get either Kyrano or Onaha to take over if I need to leave before you get back."

Jeff noticed the strange look that passed between Virgil and John but chose to ignore it. "That sounds like a plan," he agreed. "Scott, you're going to behave yourself in here until at least tomorrow morning. _Aren't_ you?"

Scott grimaced as Virgil lifted his good hand and dropped a couple of small, pink tablets onto the palm. He jiggled the tablets around for a moment and then looked up to find both Virgil and Jeff watching him with matching, amused expressions on their faces. "I'm not going to clean your head out if you don't take them," Virgil threatened softly. "I know what I've just done to your arm hurt you but you're too damn stubborn to complain. Take the tablets then you'll be more comfortable before I start trying to dig bits of wall out of your scalp."

Scott looked doubtfully up at his brother who held up a small plastic beaker of water and nodded at the tablets. "They're just painkillers, right?"

"Right," Virgil nodded again. "So just take the damn things, have a drink and then wait for a while so that they can take effect."

Scott rolled the tablets around in his palm for another couple of seconds and then, with a sigh, raised his hand and dropped the tablets into his mouth. Virgil smiled approvingly, handed him the water and then perched on the edge of the bed to wait.

~#~

Scott remained unusually quiet and placid while Virgil was working on him and fell asleep not long afterwards. Alan, Brains, Tin-Tin and Thunderbird 2 were well on their way home by the time Virgil finished and Jeff could see the worry in his most sensitive son's eyes so suggested that Virgil might like to remain in the sickroom with Scott, Gordon and Jacob until the others returned.

Virgil nodded tiredly and settled in the chair that Jeff had just vacated. Jeff rested a hand on his son's chestnut coloured hair and left it there for a moment until Virgil looked up at him with a confused expression on his face. "You did well today, Virgil," he said softly. "…and I'm glad you came back here to look after your brothers. I know you're…um…" He paused and thought through what he wanted to say. "I know you're always hesitant to override me, even if there's a medical issue involved, but you did exactly the right thing today." He shook his head, removed his hand from Virgil's hair and then squatted down in front of him. "I'm not making myself very clear here. What I'm trying to say is that I wouldn't want you to start second guessing yourself for fear of upsetting me. If ever you have a valid reason to override my orders then you go ahead and override them, you hear me? Sure, I might blow up at you over it first but once you sit me down and explain things I'll understand and if necessary I'll…well, I'll apologise. OK?"

Virgil smirked at Jeff's slight hesitation and then nodded. "OK," he agreed. "I'm just going to sit here with these three for a bit. Are you going to meet Two?"

Jeff nodded and clambered to his feet, wincing when one of his hips let out a painful sounding pop. Virgil watched him walk slowly away, rubbing his side and then slumped down into the chair between his brothers.

~#~

A little less than an hour later, Thunderbird 2 rolled to a halt inside the hangar. Jeff, who was watching from on one of the walkways smiled in amusement when he spotted the huge grin on Alan's face as he shut down the engines and waved at him through the window. He flashed his youngest son a thumbs up and headed down the steps towards the hangar floor.

Jeff met Tin-Tin, Alan and Brains as they left the huge green craft. He pulled Alan into a hug and squeezed him tightly. "Nice landing," he said fondly. "Have you had her the whole way?"

Alan nodded proudly. "Yes," he replied. "Brains asked if I wanted to and I jumped at the chance. Virgil will never normally let me so I had to say yes."

"You're just the same with Three," Jeff chuckled. "…even though you've always had to share her with John. Do you want to see the others before you get changed? I haven't done any sort of debrief with Virgil yet but I'm seriously contemplating holding it in the sickroom so that Scott and Gordon can join in."

"W-Why is Gordon in the s-sickroom M-Mr Tracy?" Brains asked quietly.

Jeff chuckled again as he pulled Alan out of the hug and tucked him under one arm. "I have no idea," he replied. "It's one of the things that Virgil's failed to fully explain since he came back with them. All I know is that he doesn't want to discuss it in front of Scott which is the main reason it hasn't happened yet. We were supposed to be having a chat after he'd finished with Scott but he seemed tired and reluctant to leave the sickroom so I didn't press the issue. He said he wanted to sit with the others but I'd put money on him not staying awake long enough to actually do any good."

Brains nodded at the reply and then fell in next to Tin-Tin as she followed Jeff and Alan up the stairs and into the house.

~#~

Jeff pressed the button to open the sickroom door and ushered Alan through in front of him. Alan stepped into the room and smiled. "Aw, that's kind of cute," he murmured as Tin-Tin stepped up beside him and giggled. "Do you think Scott has any clue that he's there?"

Jeff walked quietly up to the bed where Virgil was snuggled up against Scott's back. "I'd say not," he whispered. "He's still well out of…Oh." Jeff jumped backwards as Scott cracked open an eye. "Scott. Did I wake you?"

Scott carefully shook his head and flinched when the movement pulled on the clean bandage that Virgil had wrapped around his scalp. "Been awake for a while," he replied quietly. "Virg was already asleep back there so I stayed put."

Jeff nodded and used a finger to gently push a stray lock of Scott's hair back up off his forehead. "Are you up for a couple of visitors?" he asked. "I've got a couple of people here who want to see for themselves that you're alright."

Scott smiled and beckoned Alan over with the fingers of his right hand. "Al, come here," he murmured. "Pull up the chair if you want but do it quietly so you don't disturb the other three."

"Three?" Alan murmured as he did what he was told and sat down level with Scott's head. "Are you sure you're OK, Scott?" he whispered once he was settled. "Only there's only Virgil and Gordon in here…apart from you, of course."

Scott grinned and pointed through Alan toward where Gordon was lying. "He's not alone over there," he replied. "You'll see what I mean if you look properly."

Alan peered towards Gordon and then stood up and stepped closer until he worked out that Jacob was sleeping quietly against the red-head's chest. "Oh yeah," he replied. "I didn't think these beds were big enough to be doubles."

Scott chuckled and rolled slightly until Virgil's slumbering form stopped him. "Try telling that to Sleepy," he said with a grin. "He can't have much space back there but he's obviously comfortable enough to sleep." Due to Scott's new position he could see further across the room and he caught sight of Brains and Tin-Tin standing near the end of his bed. "Hi guys, you want to come a bit nearer so I can see you properly? You're kind of mostly out of view down there."

Brains held his hand out for Tin-Tin to precede him and the pair stepped forwards until they flanked Alan on both sides. Brains nodded a greeting to Scott while Tin-Tin reached out and gripped the wrist of Scott's good hand. She held it for a moment and smiled when Scott smiled at her not-so-covert checking of his pulse. "I'm alright," he reassured her. "I have a hard head, you know that. It'll take more than a bit of brick to keep me down."

Tin-Tin looked at Scott uncertainly for a moment before releasing his hand and laying it gently back on the bed. She bent down, placed a soft, platonic kiss on his cheek and then stepped backwards into Alan's awaiting arms.

Brains smiled as Alan made himself as small as possible so that Tin-Tin could sit on the chair beside him. He watched the pair for a moment and then noticed that Scott was doing the same. "I…I…It was more than a b-b-bit of brick," he said softly. "I d-designed Mobile Control to be t-t-tough and durable b-but…well, it's diff…it's diff…it's difficult to say that it d-didn't re-re-really survive what happened today. I...I…I could possibly attemp…attemp…try to rebuild it f-from what's left b-b-but I think i-it may make mo-more sense to s-start again from scr…from scr…from the base up. I already had p-p-plans to up-upgrade it to a s-smaller, more mobile…er…Mobile Control b-b-but today has de-de-demonstrated that a less b-bulky version may not be a goo-goo-good idea. Lighter I could see-see being a benefit but s-smaller? Maybe not so much n-now."

Scott started to nod and then frowned when the bandage on the back of his head rubbed against the pillow. "Damn," he hissed. "That hurts."

"It's only pulling because you're moving," a soft voice behind Scott piped up. "Keep still and it won't do it." Virgil yawned widely and stretched before sitting up and looking around the room. "Oh, you're back. Is everyone OK? Did you have any problems getting Mobile Control loaded into Two? Did it look salvageable?"

Scott carefully lifted his head from the pillow and very slowly turned it so he could see Virgil properly. "No," he replied. "We had the conversation while you were napping. Brains is going to build me a new, improved version. Somewhat better, probably lighter but just as big and strong."

Virgil frowned slightly at Scott and looked towards Brains for verification. Brains nodded back so Virgil turned back to Scott. "OK," he said quietly. "I believe you. Are you OK though? You're...well, you're decidedly more ebullient than you were when you went to sleep. Have I overdone your Lidocaine or something 'cos you're sounding more like Alan that yourself at the moment.


	94. Chapter 94

~#~ (Chapter 94)

Alan's indignant "Hey" was overridden by Scott's bark of laughter and both outbursts were followed by a loud yelp from Virgil when Scott managed to twist himself around enough to pinch his brother hard on the arm.

The three noises combined were enough to disturb the room's sleeping occupants and everyone stopped and held their breath as Jacob let out a quiet bleat against Gordon's chest. The little boy snuffled softly to himself for a couple of seconds and then sucked in a deep breath and wailed loudly.

Gordon's eyes flew open and he wrapped his arms tighter around Jacob to support him before trying, and failing, to sit himself up. Alan hurriedly pushed Tin-Tin to her feet and scurried around the chair to help pull his brother up while Jeff stepped across the room and raised the head of Gordon's bed to its highest position so that the aquanaut could lean against it without stressing his back.

Gordon leaned back and sighed as he lifted Jacob up against his shoulder. He sat quietly, patting the little boy's back and murmured softly to him until he quietened down again. "That's better," he whispered and then looked around to find everyone looking at him. "What?"

Jeff chuckled and slid himself onto the bed beside Gordon. "I think everyone wants to know how you're feeling," he replied. "You weren't yourself when you got back and we were worried about you."

Gordon frowned and looked at his father in confusion. "I'm fine," he responded. "It's Scott that you should be worried about. Not me. He's the one who was bruised and battered and squashed and…and…knocked out."

Jeff reached up and rubbed Gordon firmly between the shoulders. "Hey," he murmured. "Don't start getting yourself worked up. Scott's right there, look. Sure, he's bruised, he's battered and he'll be incredibly sore in the morning but he's alive and he's in more-or-less one piece. Everyone apart from Scott got back from Russia safely and apart from a few frayed nerves, no-one's got anything bad to show for it. Everyone's alright, Gordon. Honest."

Gordon looked doubtful but nodded anyway. "Where's John?" he asked. "He was here, wasn't he?"

Jeff chuckled and moved his hand from Gordon's back into his hair. "He was here briefly," he explained. "…when you first arrived but he can't check for air traffic and the like from in here so he moved to the office. After that…actually, I'm not too sure what happened to him after that. He gave you permission to land, yes?"

Alan nodded. "Yes. He gave us permission to take off and then told us when we were cleared to land again but I haven't seen him at all since we got back."

Jeff raised his arm and fiddled with his watch. "John," he said softly. "Could you tell me where you are?"

"I'm here." Jeff's watch remained silent but John's voice floated into the room from down the corridor. He appeared in the doorway a moment later and grinned at Jeff. "Sorry," he said softly. "I got kind of side-tracked. There was a…well, I don't know what you'd call it. It wasn't a rescue as such, more of a positioning malfunction."

Scott snorted. "A what?" he asked. "Do you mean someone who's lost someone else, AKA a missing person, or someone who's lost themselves, AKA…" Scott shrugged the shoulder of his unstrapped arm and frowned. "AKA, I have no idea what."

"AKA 'Someone who needs to buy a satnav?'" Alan suggested.

"…or a compass," Gordon added.

Scott shrugged again. "Someone who needs to use a bit of common sense before they leave the house in the morning. So which was it? Someone who'd lost someone or someone who'd lost themselves?"

John flushed slightly and looked at the floor. "Neither," he admitted. "I already said that it wasn't a proper rescue. Both of those situations would have been at least partly proper rescues but this…um…wasn't."

"John?" Jeff queried softly. "By the way you're acting it's obviously not a 'who' so presumably it's a 'what'. _What_ was lost, John?"

John flushed again and nodded. "Dreaming of Dallas," he said and received blank looks from Alan, Gordon and Tin-Tin but knowing nods from Jeff and the others. "I…I know you don't approve of using the equipment if it's not a human life on the line, Dad but he…the horse, well, he's pretty much invaluable to the family that own him. He was booked to run at the Derby next week and they were starting to get him ready when he was spooked by a jet from the nearby airfield. He bolted, jumped several fences and basically disappeared into the wild for over a week. Most of the town have spent the last seven days looking for him but the consensus was that if he wasn't found in the next couple of days then he probably wouldn't survive. They were out of options, Dad, so they called us on the chance that we'd be able to help."

Jeff rolled his eyes at the apprehensive lilt to John's voice. "And did we?" he asked softly as he slipped off the bed and rested his hand on John's arm. "John? Did we find him?"

John nodded and relaxed when it became clear that Jeff wasn't going to bawl him out for misusing the equipment. "Of course we did," he replied and with a grin. "He's chipped, just like most other racehorses are and once I had his details it was simple to find out where he was. He was miles from where he started and had fallen, or rolled, down a bank into part of a dried up river bed. I was able to tell the owners where he was and that he was wedged near the bottom of the slope among a whole heap of undergrowth. I hung around long enough to see them get there, cut him free and load him into a box to take him home. He was scratched, scraped and badly dehydrated but he was alive and, more importantly, his legs were all still in one piece. It'll take a while for him to get over what he's been through and he's obviously not going to the Derby next week but the owners didn't seem to care if he never raced again. They just wanted him back at home with them, where he belongs."

Jeff nodded. "Well, good, that all turned out well in the end although I'm a little surprised to find that Five…or rather 5b could pick a single chip, which is smaller than a grain of rice, out from among the millions of them that are in use around the world. I don't remember either of them having that capability."

The flush which had faded from John's face reappeared and he worried his bottom lip with his teeth for a moment before answering. "They don't," he whispered. "…so it's probably better off that you don't ask how I did it. I think it's suffice to say that I wasn't one hundred percent sure that I could do it from down here but I now know that I can and I'll do it again if I need to. If Gordon lost his dog and wanted me to find it then I probably could although I've never tested the theory on something as small as a dog bef…oh." John stopped talking and sidestepped away from his father as he realised he was digging himself into a hole that he probably couldn't explain his way out of.

Jeff raised an eyebrow at him and looked across his son's bowed head to where Scott and Virgil were sitting. Scott caught his gaze and looked down at his brother. "Johnny," he said softly. "Just how long have you been using Five to hack into the military's satellite network?"

John blanched his head flew up as he looked at Scott. "Er…um…a while," he stammered. "They…they have more of them than I do and they…um…well, they do more things."

Jeff laughed loudly and pulled John into a hug. "You were right," he chuckled. "I _was_ probably better off not knowing but as long as you're careful, which you obviously are, then I'm not too worried about you using the military's equipment. What would worry me more is that if you can hack into it, seemingly easily, then who else could?"

John shrugged. "I have, in the past, completely anonymously tipped off the US, UK and German authorities about holes in their security. Blatant, ridiculous holes that were glaringly obvious to me or anyone else wanting to break into the networks. Holes that could have been downright dangerous if the wrong person had got in through them." John stopped as he saw the doubtful look on Jeff's face. "Oh, don't worry, there's no chance of them ever tracking it back to me, or us or…Five. As far as they know someone from their own country sent the messages to them, via their own satellites, in their own code. I know the messages were read and I know they were understood because the holes were all closed within days of my...um…pointing them out. I have to chuckle though, at how much faster the Germans react than the US or UK; we're talking twice the speed, every time."

There was a rustle of bedcovers as Gordon sat up properly and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. "What else have you been asked to find?" he asked. "…and has it happened often?"

John shook his head and smiled. "Not often," he replied. "I helped to find a couple of buffalo not all that long ago. They'd been released as a group but a couple of the females had gone missing. I don't think the rangers had tried all that hard to find them, to be honest because they weren't far from where they were supposed to be. They'd just wandered away to give birth." Gordon nodded so John continued. "I've also found a cow at the bottom of a cliff, located the second of two rogue polar bears in Canada and…oh…a tiger, although that one didn't end so well."

John wrinkled his nose up in disgust and frowned when Jeff raised an eyebrow at him. "It…he…I couldn't tell what I was looking at, only that he was inside some sort of big outbuilding. I gave the coordinates to the guy who'd asked for them and then, as far as they knew I signed off and left them to it. My curiosity got the better of me though and I watched as armed men raided the place, got involved in some massive gun battle and then dragged two guys out into the middle of the courtyard and executed them. Literally. They were on their knees with their hands behind their heads and then…" John stopped and shuddered. "The outbuilding was being used as a factory to strip and process body parts from smuggled and illegally poached animals so they could be used in traditional medicines. The…um…" John shuddered again. "The raid was mentioned on the news but it made no mention of…um…executions. No mention of the men I saw getting shot, it just made out that the raid had been a great success in defeating one of the most long-standing animal smuggling rings in the world."

John pulled away from Jeff and sat down beside Gordon, taking Jacob from him and hugging the little boy tightly. "Sorry," he murmured. "…but I'd rather not talk about that any more."

Gordon leant gently against John's side, silently offering his support. John smiled gratefully at him for a moment and then grimaced and untied Jacob's soggy, wet bib and set it aside before gently lifting Jacob's top lip up with his thumb. "Are you trying to cut some more teeth in there, young man?" he asked softly. "If so then I'd appreciate it if you'd try and get them through before bedtime so that we can have some sleep tonight."

Jacob gave his father a beaming grin and leaned forwards and caught John's thumb in his mouth. He chewed on it for several seconds and then settled down to suck on it contentedly. John smiled and leaned against Gordon for a moment before he realised that everyone was watching him. "Don't start," he said softly. "I'm fine. It's Scott you should be worri…Hey, what was that for?"

With some determination, Scott had reached over and pulled the bag of medical supplies off the bedside table and onto the bed. Despite only having one working hand, he had then managed to get a direct hit on the middle of John's forehead with a cotton wool ball. "It was to stop you saying that it's me you should be worrying about," he replied. "We had that conversation earlier, before you came in and we don't need to be having it again. I'm fine, Gordon's fine, you're apparently fine and Alan's fine. Virg…" Scott gingerly lifted his head from the pillow and turned it around so he could look over his shoulder at Virgil. "Is there a particular reason that you're still sitting back there?"

Virgil raised an eyebrow at his brother. "It's a free world," he pointed out. "I can sit where I want…and besides, the chair's taken." Scott looked at the chair and realised that Virgil was telling the truth. After helping Gordon up, Alan had sat himself back in the chair and had then pulled Tin-Tin back down after him. Initially he had tried to settle the young girl back beside him but had soon given up on the idea and had dragged her up into his lap instead. He met Scott's gaze above Tin-Tin's head and winked at him with a smug expression on his face.

Scott gave another half-shrug and sagged back against his pillows. "Whatever," he groaned. "Stay there if you want. I'm just going to lie here for a bit and wait for the little miners in my head to shrivel up and die. Whoa." Scott was jostled slightly as Virgil clambered off the bed and stomped across the room. "Where are you going all of a sudden?"

Virgil pulled a large bottle from a cupboard on the wall, removed the top and shook a couple of tablets out. He recapped the bottle, put it back in the cupboard and then hurried over to Scott and held out the tablets. Tin-Tin peeled herself away from Alan and reached up to the bedside cabinet so she could pour a glass of water out of the pitcher. She handed it to Brains who passed it to Virgil who stood in front of Scott and scowled down at him. "Why do you have to be so damn stubborn?" he asked. "If you had a headache then all you needed to do was to say. What benefit is there to sitting there suffering in silence?"

Scott tried to raise an eyebrow at his brother but found himself unable to due to the bruising on his head. "Give me a break, Virg," he grumbled and then groaned loudly and raised his hand to press against the bruise on his temple. He closed his eyes and remained still for a moment before holding his hand blindly out towards his brother. "OK, I give up," he admitted. "Give me them and then leave me alone to die in peace. That's all of you, please, just give me some quiet."

~#~

Virgil helped Scott to take the tablets and then kicked Alan and Tin-Tin off the chair as Jeff ushered everyone, including Gordon, from the room. Virgil wandered towards the door, pulled it closed and turned the lights down until they were as dim as he could make them.

He kicked his shoes off by the door and padded softly back over towards Scott's bed before picking the chair up and repositioning it closer to the bed. He sat down, rested his head on his arm, close to Scott's face and gently stroked at the mussed-up, unbandaged hair on the left hand side of his brother's head. "You're your own worst enemy," he murmured. "You know that, don't you?"

Scott's eyes remained closed but the ever-present crease in his forehead deepened slightly. A moment later Scott reached out his undamaged hand and slowly knotted his fingers into Virgil's chocolate-brown hair. "OK," Virgil whispered. "Now you know exactly where I am. Will you please go to sleep?"

Scott let out the barest fraction of a nod and sighed. "Stay," he breathed. "…just 'til I fall asleep. Go talk to Dad when I have."


	95. Chapter 95

~#~ (Chapter 95)

Virgil rubbed at the back of his neck as he walked into Jeff's office. He dropped into the nearest chair, groaned and then looked around and realised that the only other person present was Jeff himself.

Jeff looked up from his paperwork and smiled at the confused look on his son's face. "I sent them to get changed while we were waiting for you," he explained. "…and John's taken the opportunity to change Jacob in the hope that he'll sit quietly in here with us while we talk."

Virgil nodded and sunk further into the chair. He let out a sigh and then looked up to find Jeff watching him patiently. "Oh," he said softly. "You want to know about Scott?" Jeff smiled gently and nodded. "He's OK," Virgil continued. "He's alright but he's not…well, he's not right, if you know what I mean? He's basically healthy in the physical sense, apart from the cuts and bruises. He's got a crack in his left elbow which'll take some time to heal and the shoulder on the same arm is badly wrenched. If he stays in a sling for a couple of weeks then both of those problems should go away on their own although he'd probably benefit from some massage sessions from Tin-Tin."

Jeff nodded again. "…and his head?" he asked. "He seemed to be…struggling with that."

"He was struggling purely because of how he is," Virgil replied. "He's concussed, uncomfortable and has the mother of all headaches but he's insisting on moving, talking and thinking. I should have realised there was a problem before he snapped but I was half asleep myself and not sitting in the best position to monitor him. He…he's asleep now and I've left Onaha in there monitoring him. It wasn't really all that long ago that he was knocked out in Tasmania so I'm going to have my eye on him for a good couple of days. He really needs to stay quiet and not get too stressed, although the latter might not be so easy, bearing in mind it's Scott that we're talking about."

Jeff chuckled and tapped at John's mobile console with his pen. "It'll help if this thing keeps quiet," he commented. "Scott's not going to stay calm, quiet or stress-free if any of you are out in the birds, especially if either Gordon or Alan are out in One."

Virgil smiled broadly. "True," he agreed. "We'll have to just hope that the world stays quiet for a couple of days. I'd also like to try and confine Scott to his room as much as I can, to give him as little as possible to think about or do. He's going to feel pretty rubbish for a while and knowing how he hates to show weakness…well, I might just get away with it." Virgil's smile faltered and he looked up to find Jeff watching him again. "I promised that I'd explain about Gordon, didn't I? I'd…I'd rather do that now, while the others aren't here to…um…overhear?"

"I get the impression that John knows at least part of what happened already," Jeff replied softly. "…and Gordon obviously does. If you're certain that you don't want Tin-Tin, Alan and Brains to find out what happened then you'd better tell me now but you're not going to have time to get changed if you do."

Virgil shrugged his shoulders out of his flight suit and tied the arms around his waist. He sniffed gently at his underarms, grimaced slightly and then smoothed down his undershirt and looked back at Jeff. "That'll have to do for now. I kind of promised Gordon that Scott wouldn't find out what he did and the fewer people that know about it, the less likely it is that he'll find out."

~#~

Virgil had just finished recounting the story of how Gordon had dropped One when John walked into the room with Jacob in his arms. It quickly became obvious that John had noticed One's less-than-perfect take-off and between the pair of them, Virgil and Jeff briefly explained what had happened.

By the time that the others filed into the office, Jacob was sitting happily on Virgil's knee and John was nowhere to be seen. He reappeared a couple of minutes later, followed by Kyrano and a trolley loaded with coffee, sandwiches, cake and a bottle of baby milk.

John was careful that Jacob didn't catch sight of the bottle and slipped it onto the floor beside Virgil's foot. Virgil looked down to see what he was doing and nodded. "OK," he murmured. "I get the idea, although I can't remember when the last time I fed one of these was."

John smiled and patted him on the back. "I'll have him if you'd rather, either now or when he needs feeding."

Virgil shook his head and stood Jacob up on his legs so the little boy was facing him. "We're alright," he said softly as Jacob beamed up at him. "Aren't we, little guy?" Jacob radiated happiness as he squealed loudly at his uncle. He flexed his knees as Virgil jiggled him up and down and then squealed again and emitted a large stream of drool which dripped down his chin and soaked into the clean bib which John had wrapped him in. "Yeah, we're OK."

John turned around and chuckled as everyone stood up and shuffled one chair further down the room to allow him to sit down near Virgil. He smiled at them and then sat down with the milky coffee that Kyrano placed in his hand.

~#~

The debriefing proceeded swiftly and Gordon was commended highly for keeping his head in a stressful situation. Jeff, Virgil and John skirted around the issue of the near-crash-landing and stuck to the story that Virgil had gone home in One simply so he could offer medical assistance to Scott. Virgil made it clear to everyone that Scott needed to be kept as quiet as possible over the next few days in order for him to recover from his ordeal but explained that Scott would, eventually, be back to his normal, bossy self.

~#~

Scott moved out of the sickroom and back into his own room the morning after the debriefing but found that with his arm bound tightly to his chest he needed assistance doing even the most basic of tasks. Luckily it was quiet and no rescue calls were received so Virgil was able to stay with him almost constantly, helping him dress, bathe and generally keeping his spirits up until he felt up to rejoining the rest of the family.

~#~

A couple of days later, Scott found himself parked on the sofa in the centre of the sitting room while Virgil sat on the floor and dismantled a piece of equipment on the table in front of him. He watched Virgil for several minutes and then looked around the room. "Virg," he said quietly. "You got any idea where Dad is at the moment?"

Virgil looked up from his tinkering and frowned. "No," he replied. "He's probably in his office. Do you want me to go and look?"

Scott shook his head. "No, you're fine Virg. Just help me up and I'll go myself."

Virgil scrambled off the floor and helped Scott get to his feet without jostling his shoulder or arm. Scott nodded his appreciation and wandered away, smiling as he felt Virgil's gaze on him until he was out of sight.

~#~

Scott returned almost fifteen minutes later with several books tucked inside his sling. He was carrying two mugs of coffee awkwardly in his right hand so Virgil reached up and relieved him of them before helping him back down onto the sofa. He handed one of the mugs back to Scott and sat down beside him. "You OK?" he asked. "Did you find Dad?"

"Yeah," Scott nodded and took a sip of his coffee. "He sent the coffee. He wanted to send Kyrano with it but I said I'd be OK. I have one useable arm as well as storage in here…" he tapped gently on the sling and pulled out the books which he rested on the arm of the sofa. "I don't want everyone running around after me, Virg, you know how I hate that. I'm not completely helpless."

Virgil shook his head. "We all know that," he replied softly. "You're not helpless but you _are_ injured. What are the books?"

Scott smiled at Virgil's complete change of subject. "They're Rosie's diaries," he explained. "We…that's Dad and I, we're reading backwards through Rosie's life over the past few years, trying to see if there's a specific reason that she did…well, what she did to John. Dad hasn't had much chance to go through them himself but I started before…" He leaned down and put his coffee cup on the floor before waving his now-free right hand across his left arm and finishing off with his palm resting level with the still-spectacular contusion on his temple. "…before all this."

Virgil nodded sympathetically and motioned towards the books. "May I?"

Scott looked around the room and listened carefully for the slightest sight or sound of John. "Go on," he said softly. "Just don't let Johnny see them. They…upset him."

Virgil gently thumbed through the beginning of the topmost book and whistled softly. "Wow," he breathed. "Talk about detailed. I take it John knows you've got them?"

Scott nodded sadly. "He knows," he replied. "He kind of asked Dad and I to go through them because he knew he wouldn't have been able to handle it himself. He made the mistake of flicking through them." Scott stopped and found the one unfinished book where the entries suddenly stopped. "This one. The…last one is the one that upset him and _really _upset him if you get what I mean?"

Virgil bowed his head slightly and nodded. "I can see his point," he murmured. "It's his life, or at least part of it is. Look." Virgil held up the open page of the book he'd been skimming through. The page contained a glossy, printed photograph of John and Rosie sitting on a grassy hilltop with a beautiful, cloudless blue sky behind them. John's arm was extended towards the bottom of the picture where he'd held the camera out in front of them to take the photograph and Rosie was a picture of health and happiness beside him. The girl was clearly at ease with John and the love she held for him was plainly visible in her eyes. John too, was more relaxed than either Scott or Virgil could remember seeing him in a long time.

Virgil turned the book back towards himself and studied the picture for several long moments. "That's given me an idea," he said slowly. "Are you going to have these for a while?" Scott shrugged lopsidedly which made Virgil roll his eyes. "I'd like to borrow this one," he continued. "Or at least…I don't know, look at it for a while. Would that be OK?"

Scott shrugged again. "I suppose so," he replied. "The same still stands though. No letting Johnny see them and no mentioning them within his earshot. Got it?"

Virgil nodded. "Got it. It's no use to me in here anyway. I'll leave it with you for now and I'll have it this evening."

~#~

The rest of the morning passed quietly with Scott reading and Virgil working at the table. At one point Virgil looked up to find Scott scowling at one of the books and, when he asked him what was wrong, Scott simply said that he needed to take notes or he was going to forget vital points. Virgil hurried away and returned shortly afterwards with a pen and a pad of Tracy Industries headed paper. Scott then spent the rest of the morning scribbling copious notes on the paper, thankful that it wasn't his right arm that had been put out of action.

Various family members wandered through during the morning including Ruth who tutted at Virgil's 'misuse' of the table when she took the boys a midmorning snack. Gordon ambled through on his way to the pool and then again on his way back and John, with Jacob balanced on his hip, joined them just before lunch. Virgil looked worriedly at Scott only to find that neither the diaries nor the notepad were anywhere to be seen.

~#~

Jeff wandered into the room and announced that lunch was ready. He ushered John from the room while Virgil helped Scott up and found himself being handed the pile of books and the notepad. "Stash them somewhere," Scott hissed. "I'm going to pee."

Virgil shook his head and watched as Scott loped away without looking back. He looked through the doorway to check the coast was clear and then headed towards Scott's bedroom and hid the books in one of his desk drawers.

~#~

Scott spent the next few days working his way through the three most recent diaries and eventually started on the older ones. By the time he finished he had a pile of notes and had developed an interesting, if unwanted, understanding of Rosie's life.

~#~

Scott lay in bed mulling over the things he'd read. Eventually he gave up trying to sleep and, after tossing and turning for most of the night, got up, gathered his notes together and went in search of his father.

The two men sat in Jeff's room and talked for several hours, putting together another set of notes which they would use when speaking to John. They parted ways once they were sure they'd been through everything and were certain of what they were going to tell John. Jeff headed straight for his office while Scott wandered aimlessly around the house for several minutes before heading down towards the pool. He sat down on one of the loungers, fell asleep and remained that way until Gordon inadvertently splashed him when climbing out of the pool after his morning swim.

"Sorry," the red-head murmured. "I was just trying to see if you were OK. Did you have a bad night?"

Scott nodded. "Something like that," he replied. "I had a long chat with Dad at silly-o'clock this morning. It was all good though, things that needed discussing without people being able to overhear, that sort of thing."

Gordon shrugged and held a hand out towards his brother. "Is this something to do with the books you've had your nose buried in for the best part of a week?"

Scott raised an eyebrow and looked down at his watch. "Four days," he said softly. "I've had my nose buried in them for four days." He paused while he used Gordon's hand to pull himself upright. "No-one was supposed to notice but it's not like I could do a lot else."

Gordon nodded his acknowledgement and fell in beside Scott as he climbed the steps up to the house. "Is this something to do with John?" he asked quietly. "Only I noticed that the books seemed to miraculously disappear anytime he stepped into the room with you."

Scott stopped dead on the steps and smiled at Gordon's perceptiveness. "Damn you, Gordon, you don't miss a trick, do you? Yes, the books are to do with John, no I won't tell you what they are and, more importantly, do you think John realised that something was going on?"

Gordon chuckled loudly and raised his hand defensively in front of his body. "I didn't say I wanted to know what they were," he pointed out. "I just wanted to know if I was seeing what I thought I was seeing and I obviously was. In answer to your last point though, I honestly don't think John noticed anything but if he did then he either couldn't work out what you were up to or didn't care."

Scott snorted. "Oh, he'd have cared," he replied. "I can assure you of that. He's been acting normal so I guess we'll have to assume he didn't notice." Gordon shrugged and started walking slowly up the steps again. "Wait, Gords," Scott called after him. "Assuming we're not called out, can you take charge of the little'un for a while this afternoon? Dad and I need to talk things through with John and if there's even a remote chance that he's noticed something over the past few days then we really need to talk to him urgently. I'll have a word with Alan when he gets up to make sure he'll man 5b for us but would you be alright with Titch?"

Gordon snorted this time. "Of course I will," he replied, a little defensively. "I love having him. You know that."

Scott nodded. "Sorry," he said quietly. "I do know that but that's not what I meant. What I meant was 'did you have anything in particular planned for this afternoon'?"

Gordon shook his head. "Nothing that I can't change, no. Look, I'm going for a run with Alan after breakfast, do you want me to have a word with him about 5b? He and Tin-Tin usually like the afternoon shift anyway so I can't imagine he'll have a problem with it."

"Good," Scott replied. "…and thanks. I'll speak to Dad and tell him to expect John and myself in his office after lunch."


	96. Chapter 96

~#~ (Chapter 96)

Gordon commandeered Jacob as soon as lunch finished. Alan and Tin-Tin went down to 5b, Virgil went to find Brains and Scott steered John towards Jeff's office. John baulked when he realised where he was being taken and why and refused to move until Scott wrapped his good arm around his brother's waist and gently coaxed him forwards.

"C'mon, Johnny," Scott murmured. "You knew this was coming. You need to know what was going through her head and why. I won't lie and say it's good because it's not but I can tell you that it's nothing you did. As far as I can tell, you did nothing wrong where Rosie was concerned, apart from being a bit dense and maybe a little naïve."

John raised an eyebrow at this and allowed Scott to gently push him a tiny amount nearer to Jeff's office before he stopped again. "You are coming in with me, aren't you?" he asked quietly.

Scott rolled his eyes and smiled. "Of course I am. Who do you think it is that's actually read through everything?…and I mean _everything_. I've gone backwards through the books, right to when Rosie started writing them. I also went through the letters." Scott winced. "I guess I should have asked before I took them but I figured you'd rather not know."

John nodded and sagged slightly against Scott before remembering that his brother wasn't fully fit. "Sorry," he murmured. "I don't mind you taking them. I couldn't have gone through them myself. They were out that…that night when everything else was but I hadn't opened any of them."

"I think that's just as well," Scott replied. "They were…well, I think they were probably worse than the diaries. They were more…um…personal, in a way but I had to go through them because there were things in the diaries that didn't make sense without them."

John nodded again. "It's OK," he whispered. "I said you and Dad could go through everything and I meant it. I guess it just fell to you because of that." He pointed towards Scott's sling and shrugged. "I don't suppose you'd have managed to get it done this quick if that hadn't happened."

Scott shook his head. "No," he replied. "I don't suppose I would. Come on, let's get in there. I know it's going to be upsetting but honestly, Johnny, it does need doing."

John let out a sigh and started walking towards Jeff's office, his head bowed and he exuded an air of hopelessness which made him look as if he was on his way to his execution. Scott rolled his eyes again and hurried after his brother.

~#~

Jeff had almost finished rearranging the furniture in his office when John knocked on the door and walked inside. The Tracy patriarch, with the help of Kyrano, had carried a couple of comfy chairs into the office from the sitting room and had arranged them around a low table which John realised had also come from the other room. "Wouldn't it have just been easier to sit out there?" he asked as he pointed back towards the door. "That seems like an awful lot of work for no real benefit."

"Maybe," Jeff looked around the room and chuckled. "…but not so much work that the privacy of this room was outweighed by the amount of lifting. Everyone's at home at the moment and the sitting room's worse than Grand Central Station even when half of you are missing. We can talk in here without fear of someone walking in unannounced. Scott? What's wrong?"

Scott was swaying in the doorway with his eyes screwed tightly shut. His right arm was clamped over his left and he was breathing raggedly through his mouth.

John stepped backwards and reached Scott at the same time as Jeff who had hurried across the room towards him. Scott startled badly and cracked a pain-filled eye open when his father rested a gentle hand against his back. Jeff winced at the look Scott gave him and pulled him gently into the room, motioning for John to close the door his brother was clear of it.

"Let go," Jeff ordered softly as he pushed Scott down onto one of the chairs and squatted in front of him. "Scott, let go. You're not going to do it any good if you keep crushing it like that."

Scott let out a long, shuddery breath and forced himself to open the fingers of his right hand. Jeff pulled the hand down, gripped it tightly and used his watch to call Virgil. John carefully tucked the folds of Scott's sling back into place and then perched gently on the chair beside his brother with his arm around his shoulders.

Virgil skidded into the room a couple of minutes later, just as Scott managed to get a grip on the pain in his arm. He was finally coherent enough to explain that he'd tripped on the carpet runner and bumped his elbow against the doorframe and then jokingly told the others that he was glad he'd been knocked out when he'd damaged the arm in the first place if that's what the pain would have been like.

Virgil tutted at him and then offered to take him down to the sickroom to re-check his arm. Scott refused, saying that everyone was where they were for a reason and that he wasn't going to be responsible for messing up the plans for the afternoon. He promised Virgil that he'd report to the sickroom later in the day to double-check he hadn't caused any further damage to his elbow. Virgil reluctantly agreed and eventually went back downstairs, leaving John, Scott and Jeff in the office.

~#~

Jeff watched Virgil walk away and then got up and gently closed the door behind him. "You're absolutely sure you want to do this now?" he asked. Scott nodded, John shrugged and Jeff rolled his eyes. "Alright. Well are the pair of you at least going to move onto separate chairs? These aren't really designed for two."

Scott looked across at John who was still perched on the edge of the chair beside him and grinned. "It's up to you, Johnny, you're the one who's about to fall off."

John shrugged and clambered off Scott's chair. He dragged one of the others slightly nearer to his brother and then sat on it. Jeff nodded, sat down on the last chair, shuffled it up to the table and picked up a notepad. "I'm sorry," he murmured when John gave the notepad a funny look. "It was a little complicated and we wanted to make sure we had everything straight between ourselves before we spoke to you. This seemed the simplest way."

John nodded and looked at Scott who was gently massaging the thumb of his left hand. Scott shrugged apologetically and then smiled. "I intended just to read through the books and then relay what I found to either yourself or Dad but there was just too much there. The older books go back years…literally years. They started when Rosie was eight and continued right up until…um…well, until the morning of the accident." Scott let go of his thumb and held his right hand out to John who took it with a sad smile. "It's up to you where you want to start. At the beginning or the end, it'll make sense eventually either way. I went backwards but I think forwards probably makes more sense and things will become clearer...um…sooner."

John looked from Scott to Jeff and back again before responding. "I get the impression I'm not going to like what I hear anyway so I suppose we may as well start at the beginning. Eight, you said? Really?"

Scott nodded sadly. "Yeah. There's a…well, there's a reason she started writing them then. Did she ever tell you how she got the scar on her forehead?"

John pulled back slightly and frowned. "No," he replied. "I never asked. It wasn't an issue and it was just part of who she was. Why? Is it relevant?"

Scott nodded again and squeezed John's hand. "Yes," he murmured. "It's totally relevant. As are the broken leg and arm that were mentioned in Rosie's post-mortem. The injuries are all tied together with the death of her mother. I take it, if you don't know where the scar came from, that you don't know the rest either?"

John shook his head. "Not really," he replied. "I know that Mr Sampson died when Rosie was two and that she doesn't…er…didn't remember him at all. I also know that her mother was very sickly and that Rosie ended up as her full time carer for the last few years leading up to her death. I don't know exactly what was wrong with her but once she'd passed on, Rosie spent the last few years of her childhood living with one of the neighbours. She didn't like to talk about that part of her life but I used to think that she was an amazing person to have gone through all that and still end up with grades that were good enough to get into Harvard."

Scott looked across at Jeff and nodded sadly. "We thought pretty much the same thing," he said softly. "Although what you know is the abridged version. You have one of the main characters missing completely but I don't blame Rosie for not telling you about him…or what happened between the three of them."

John frowned and thought back over the brief times when Rosie had opened up enough to tell him even the scantest of details about her past. "I don't know what you mean by that," he replied. "…but that's literally all I know. Rosie really didn't talk about her past and I learnt, very soon after meeting her, that it was a subject best avoided."

Scott nodded again. "She may not have spoken about what happened but she certainly wrote about it. Rosie poured her heart and soul into her diaries after being made to suffer through what she described as 'too many visits from the question men'." John raised an eyebrow and stared at Scott. "She was eight," Scott reminded him softly. "But from what I can gather the 'question men' were psychologists...or possibly social workers. Either way, one of them seems to have suggested that if she wouldn't talk to them then she might like to put her thoughts down on paper. I assume the idea was that they would be able to read the books rather than having to force Rosie to talk but I don't know if anyone ever did read them or not. They weren't easy to read, partially because they were written in an eight-year-old's handwriting but partially because of the content." Scott stopped and shook his head. "Sorry, I…I'm not explaining this very well."

It was John's turn to give Scott's hand a comforting squeeze. "I think that maybe you're going as fast as you need to," he offered and then stopped and cocked his head towards the door as the noise of a particularly loud and unhappy-sounding Jacob filtered into the room. "Do you think I should…"

"No," Jeff interrupted him. "Gordon's more than capable of looking after Jacob but if he's struggling then he only needs to turn to Mother, Kyrano or Onaha." Jeff watched the door and squinted as the little boy's pitiful cries died away. "They're headed towards the bedrooms so he probably just needs changing. It proves what I said about the sitting room though. Grand Central Station, I tell you."

John and Scott shared a look and smiled at one another before Jeff turned back towards them. "John," he said softly. "How do you want to do this?" Do you want Scott to continue at his own pace or would you rather we tried to condense things for you as per the notes here?"

John squeezed Scott's hand again. "I think I'd prefer Scott's condensed version," he replied quietly. "If you don't mind?"

Jeff sighed softly and shook his head. "Not at all. Scott's the one who experienced the books first-hand so it's probably right that he tells you. Is that OK by you, Scott?"

Scott looked from Jeff to John and back again before performing his now-patented one-shouldered shrug. "I guess so," he replied. "Although you'd do well to keep your eye on what I'm saying to make sure I don't miss anything…um…vital."

"Fine by me." Jeff sat back on his chair with the notes resting on his knee. "And then we'll keep these somewhere safe, probably with the diaries so that all the information will still be there for you, John, if you need to refer to it in the future. It'll save you having to go searching through the books themselves if you can't quite remember something or if you need further clarification on anything. That's not saying that you can't ask myself or Scott if you need to, it's just to let you know that the information will still be here somewhere, if you need it."

John nodded. "It's OK," he whispered. "I understand."

~#~

Scott condensed version turned out to be quite long and detailed as he spent the next several hours talking John through Rosie's life. He quietly told John that Josiah Sampson passed away from colon cancer just three days before Rosie's second birthday and that Rosie and her mother, Lauren, remained alone in the house from then on.

When Rosie was five and a half her mother befriended an ex-serviceman who had been released from the US Air Force after taking a bullet to the lower leg. The bullet had shattered both the tibia and fibula on James Taster's right side and had left him with a pronounced limp and the need to use a cane to get himself around. Despite this, or maybe because of it, Lauren had taken pity on the pleasant, quiet young man and had taken him under her wing, into her home and into her bed. Things soon settled down for the little family and Rosie had enjoyed having a father-figure around her, something she had never remembered having before.

The idyllic family life came to an abrupt end, just before Christmas the following year when James went to collect Rosie from her evening dance class and took a heavy fall on a patch of thick winter ice. The fall created a large break and several small cracks in the area below the original damage to James' right tibia and the young man found himself separated from his new family over the Christmas period while specialists tried to put him back together for the second time in less than three years. The second reconstruction of the leg turned out to be only partially successful and James left the hospital in a great deal of pain and dependant on pills and potions just to keep him functioning.

The relationship between James and Lauren deteriorated quickly once James moved back into the house. The tablets made his mind fuzzy and blurred his judgement and he became bitter over his lack of mobility which he soon started to blame Rosie for. James saw his accident as Rosie's fault because he'd only been outside the gym at the time he slipped because he was collecting her from her dance class and he told the little seven year old that if she hadn't been so spoiled then he wouldn't have been there and he wouldn't have been hurt. He moaned that he shouldn't have been chasing round after someone else's spoilt brat after serving his country and Rosie eventually took to avoiding him completely.

Apart from when she was at school, the little girl started to spend most of her time in her room. At first she was resentful of James having the run of the house when she couldn't but Lauren had sat with her and explained that James was unwell and that he would be the man they knew and loved again just as soon as he no longer needed to take the tablets.

Unfortunately for both Rosie and Lauren, James never reached that stage. His dependence on the medications grew, rather than waned and as he became more and more dependent on the tablets his temper became shorter. James grew paranoid and irritable and his demands on Lauren increased exponentially to the point where he wouldn't let her out of the house for fear that she would be snatched away from him by the neighbours, aliens or the random vagrant who lived on the corner of the next street.

While all this was going on downstairs, poor Rosie was forced to remain a virtual prisoner in her room. James would hurl abuse at her if ever he spotted her so she only dared to venture out into the house if she needed to use the bathroom. Lauren would make up food parcels for her daughter and slip them through into Rosie's room in the middle of each night while James was asleep and each morning the little girl would dress herself, slip the food parcel into her bag and climb out of her bedroom window. She would clamber down the oak tree and escape off to school to have a wash and clean her teeth. Several of the teachers noticed that she was often extremely early and the little girl had to continuously had to make excuses as to why she was untidy and why her clothes were often unwashed or unpressed.

~#~

Everything came to a head one Saturday morning when the household woke to find that the refrigerator had failed overnight and that the milk had gone sour. James hit the roof, demanding to know exactly who had sabotaged the refrigerator. The paranoid part of his personality couldn't cope with 'knowing' that someone had been into the house and damaged the refrigerator to kidnap Lauren when she left the house to get more supplies. He downed a cup of strong black coffee along with three of his tablets and then sat at the kitchen table and stewed for several minutes. Lauren sat quietly on the other side of the table and waited for him to explode.

The explosion was worse than the small, brow-beaten woman could have imagined. After mulling everything over in his mind, James turned the whole argument on its head and decided that it must have been Lauren herself that had damaged the refrigerator in order to get away from him. He yelled, shouted and bared his teeth at the woman and then screamed for Rosie to get her 'lazy little butt' downstairs and into the kitchen.

A terrified Rosie scuttled out of her room, down the stairs and into Lauren's arms. James watched her for several seconds and then very slowly, and seemingly calmly, reached out and pulled her away from her mother. Lauren froze as James pulled Rosie towards himself and wrapped one of his strong hands loosely around the little girl's throat. He quietly ordered her out of the house suggested that she needed to get out and back with the milk in less than half an hour. The threat remained unspoken but Lauren understood that Rosie's very existence would be in jeopardy if she didn't return within the allocated thirty minutes time slot.

~#~

James was breathing raggedly as he watched Lauren drive away and Rosie recognised that he was a hairs-breadth away from snapping completely. She remained completely motionless and silent in the hope that he might either forget about her or let her go and eventually, after almost twenty minutes, he did the latter.

James looked at his watch and tightened his grip around Rosie's neck for a moment before lifting her from the floor and throwing her roughly in the direction of the staircase. The little girl threw her arm out in order to stop her head from hitting the floor at the bottom of the stairs and a loud snapping sound reverberated around the room.

Rosie screamed and clutched at her arm for a moment before realising her mistake in not fleeing straight up to her room when she had the chance. Through the open-plan balustrade rails she saw that James was heading straight for her and started to scamper up the stairs as fast as she could. Unfortunately for the little girl, James was feeling no pain by that point and he reached out and grabbed a handful of Rosie's shirt as she frantically tried to get around the bend in the staircase to the floor above. He lifted the terrified child up off the floor with one almighty heave and shook her when she yelped with a combination of fear and pain.

The shaking jarred Rosie's broken arm and proved to be her undoing as the little girl wet herself and dissolved into floods of hysterical tears. James shook her again in disgust and then turned on the spot when the kitchen door flew open. Lauren, burst through the now-open doorway and shrieked when she saw her daughter struggling feebly against James' grip. A split second later, Lauren was joined in the doorway by Rosie's form tutor, Mr Stewart. Tom Stewart was a strapping young blonde man who, along with teaching a class of seven and eight year olds, also coached the school's soccer team. He rested his hand on Lauren's shoulder for a moment and then gently pushed past her and into the room.

The sight of another man laying his hand on Lauren sent James apoplectic. He roared at the younger man which scared Rosie and started her screaming again, even louder than she had previously. James shook her again, hard and then noticed that Tom had reached the bottom of the staircase and was climbing slowly upwards with his hands outstretched in a pacifying manner.

Rosie's tiny body flew limply down the stairs as James hurled her towards Tom before vaulting over the banister rail and landing on the kitchen table. He breathed heavily for a moment and then, with an inhuman scream of rage, launched himself off the table and straight at Lauren. He grabbed the unfortunate woman by her pony tail, slammed her head against the doorframe as hard as he could and then fled through the open doorway and disappeared off into the cold, crisp morning.

Lauren crumpled to the floor like a ragdoll and lay still. She was vaguely aware of movement around her for a couple of seconds but never regained full consciousness. The pain and damage from the skull fracture was extensive and Lauren had been through so much and had been so badly traumatised by what had happened that she was never to be the same again. After being released from the hospital she was dependent on her daughter, Rosie, for the rest of her life.

Rosie herself had suffered a traumatic blow to the head in her unconventional trip down the stairs. Tom had done his best to cushion her fall but hadn't been far enough up the staircase to stop the girl tumbling head over heels down most of the hard, wooden steps. He caught his little student in time to stop her cracking her head open on the floor at the bottom of the stairs and was told that he'd probably saved her life in doing so. He was however, too late to stop her left leg from doubling up and breaking beneath her and too late to stop her head being split open on one of the steps near the top of the staircase.

He had sat and cushioned her tiny body with his own as he'd phoned 911 and he'd travelled to the hospital with her in the ambulance. Lauren was loaded into a following ambulance and it was days later before anyone knew whether either of the Sampson girls would survive their ordeal.


	97. Chapter 97

~#~ (Chapter 97)

Rosie was treated for her injuries and then poked, prodded and psychoanalysed before being placed into a foster home specifically for 'damaged' children. It was several months before she was reunited with her mother and still months after that before Lauren was finally released from the rehabilitation ward of the local hospital and Rosie was allowed home.

The attack left Lauren with epilepsy and a slight weakness down the left side of her body. She had to take anticonvulsant drugs on a daily basis and suffered on and off from severe migraines for the rest of her life. With help from several of the neighbours, she managed to give little Rosie some semblance of a childhood; taking her out for day trips and helping with her homework, even though the almost ten year old child still carried out most of the day to day chores around the house.

~#~

Lauren died very suddenly and unexpectedly, almost two and a half years later. One bright, sunny Tuesday morning, Rosie had got up, washed and dressed before school. She had prepared breakfast on a tray and had taken it upstairs only to find her mother lying cold, pale and still in bed.

Rosie understood immediately that Lauren had passed away and quietly placed the tray on the floor beside the bed before hurrying downstairs, outside and across the road to ask one of the neighbours for help.

The next ten months were a state of flux for the near-teenager with an on-going battle raging between her social workers, teachers and neighbours about what was in her best interests. After burying her mother, Rosie pretty much shut down and refused to speak to any of them, pouring all her thoughts and feelings into her diaries every chance she got. She consistently ran away from every foster home she was placed in, got in with the wrong crowd at school and eventually, when the social services gave her up as a lost cause, she moved in with the kind, elderly neighbour across the road from her original home.

Lauren and Rosie's house was sold and the money put in a trust fund for when Rosie came of age. Rosie herself was prescribed with some mild anti-depressants which stabilised her wayward personality and the now-teenage girl knuckled down and threw herself headlong into her studies, eventually qualifying for a scholarship placement at Harvard.

~#~

John rubbed his eyes to clear away the tears and Scott pulled him into a one-armed hug. "How could I not know this?" John asked, sliding sideways in his chair and resting his head against Scott's shoulder. "I knew Rosie for years and yet it sounds like I didn't know anything about her at all."

Jeff climbed out of his chair and moved over to the coffee table where he sat down in front of John. "You didn't know because Rosie didn't want you to," he murmured quietly. "By the time you got to know her it was all in the past and Rosie was dependant on her diaries. She told them her thoughts, feelings and secrets and she didn't…or rather she didn't _seem_ to think that she needed anyone else to confide in. I'm sure the social worker or whomever it was that suggested the idea in the first place meant well. They probably didn't realise that the diaries would eventually come to replace human contact, kindness and compassion."

John frowned slightly. "So you mean she used the diaries instead of actually speaking to people?" he asked. "…and you're including me among those 'people'?"

Jeff pressed his lips tightly together for a moment and then nodded. "Yes," he replied. "I'm including you, me, Scott, the neighbours, the schools, social services and, heck, the rest of the United States of America in 'those people'."

Scott nodded his agreement. "It doesn't seem like Rosie felt she could confide in her neighbour, despite living under the same roof for many years. The main thing she seemed to want to avoid being was a burden and, from what I could gather, she would literally get up, go to school, go home, help with the housework, cook the dinner and then bury herself in her schoolwork until it was time for bed. When she went to bed she wouldn't sleep because she'd spend hour upon hour writing in her books. It became something of a vicious circle; the more 'unheard' she was, the more unhappy she became. The unhappier she became, the more she needed to confide in someone who either wasn't there, or wasn't able, to listen or understand. Back to what you said earlier, she must have been amazing…and I mean _really amazing_, to go through everything she did and still get into Harvard."

John rubbed his eyes again and nodded. "I never understood why she had to get in on a scholarship. I guess her money was still locked away from her at that stage. It was…out of her reach, so to speak. Harvard supplied her accommodation as well as the funds for her to go there but it was well worth it for all concerned. Rosie worked hard and her grades were good, even if she didn't put them to any great use once she left there. That's something else I could never understand; why she never got a proper job after spending so long in school. She got good grades but was happy to do menial work such as table-clearing, bar-work and then running the smallholding in New Zealand. Oh, and I never got why she insisted on staying in the student accommodation rather than moving into the apartment with me. I asked her several times but she said she was happier with her own space. I left her with an open invitation to come in if she ever felt the need to get away but she never took me up on it. We saw each other in school, after school and the like but she'd never come round to mine and I was never allowed back to hers. I wondered at the time if it was because she was embarrassed by the housing but I admit that I always thought that was a moot point because I'd walk her right back to her door and make sure she got inside safely, so I knew exactly where she lived and what it was like. It wasn't that bad, to be honest; I mean, it's not like Harvard would lend their students grotty accommodation. It wasn't at all like the apartment where she and Jacob were living in Tasmania." John shuddered and rested harder against Scott.

Jeff leant forwards and pushed John's chair closer to his brother's and smiled when John nodded his appreciation. "Do you understand now, John? Do you understand why she wouldn't let you in and why she wouldn't move in with you?" Jeff asked the question softly and sighed when John shrugged. "Rosie didn't remember her father. She lived alone with her mother for three and a half years before she finally had a father figure in her life. That father figure, the only male influence in her young life, should have loved, cared for and protected Rosie until she was ready to leave for college…and probably still longer after that. Instead he doted on her for a year, got under her skin and into her heart and then turned on her and made her life…and her mother's, a living hell." Jeff held a finger up as Scott opened his mouth to object. "I know it wasn't entirely his fault. I know he was sick and in pain and…" Jeff threw both his hands into the air in an expression of total exasperation. "It shouldn't have happened. That's all. A father should protect his children; even if they're not biologically his own. If he's taken them on then he should treat them as he would treat his own flesh and blood, not hit, torment or abuse them. And the same goes for his partner."

Jeff hadn't realised he was shaking until he found himself wrapped in John's arms with Scott's hand resting on his knee.

"Dad," John said softly. "Dad, calm down. It's in the past. He's gone. He's…" John paused, frowned and looked over at Scott. "Tell me he paid for what he did. Tell me they caught him and…and…" He shrugged and clung tighter to Jeff for a moment before the older man reached up and gently rubbed his arm.

"He paid alright," Scott whispered. "…although I don't think Rosie ever knew what happened to him. I had to do some serious digging around on the internet to find out myself." He stopped, sighed and scrubbed his good hand through his hair. He then gave Jeff and apologetic look and continued. "He was tracked down within hours of running from the house but apparently he resisted arrest…and I mean he _really_ resisted. It took three cops and a couple of police dogs to take him down in the end and by the time they finally got hold of him he was somewhat worse for wear and needed hospital treatment for more than just his drug problem. Someone didn't think things through and he was taken to the same hospital that Rosie and her mother had been taken to just a few hours before. He either worked out, or guessed that they were somewhere nearby and punched out one of the nurses while he was being examined. In the ensuing chaos he managed to get away and ran amok through the hospital for several minutes before finally being cornered in one of the operating rooms. He had armed himself with a scalpel, somewhere along the way and injured several of the cops…and two of the hospital security guards before turning the blade on himself." Scott shuddered and pressed his index finger hard into his neck, midway between his right ear and his Adam's apple. He paused for a moment and then slid his finger quickly forwards and across the front of his neck. "He didn't stand a chance," he said sadly. "…and was pretty much dead before he hit the floor. His mother had his body transported back to Noble, Oklahoma and, as far as I know, that was where he stayed."

Both John and Jeff remained quiet as they absorbed Scott's shocking revelation. John opened his mouth to speak and then clamped it shut again and dropped back onto the chair beside Jeff. He let out a low groan and then leant forwards and buried his face in his hands. Jeff wrapped an arm around his shoulders, kissed the top on his head and then just held him.

~#~

Several minute later, John emerged from behind his hands and gave both Jeff and Scott an apologetic but slightly self-conscious look.

Jeff smiled softly and reached up to stroke John's hair back into some semblance of order. "You OK?" he asked "John?"

John shrugged. "I…" he began. "I don't know. You've always taught us to try not to think badly of anyone and I know that drugs and injury and war and…" John stopped and shrugged again. "…whatever can do strange…bad things to a person but I think I might be glad he died. Was it his fault? No. Could something have been done to help him? Possibly. Am I glad he died so that he couldn't hurt anyone else? Yes."

John dropped his head downwards again and rolled his face against Jeff's chest so he couldn't see the disapproving looks that he was certain would be heading his way after his little outburst. Jeff wrapped his arms around his son again and looked across at Scott.

Rather than disapproval, the look that Jeff shared with Scott was one of sorrow and worry. Jeff wrapped his arms tighter around John and buried his hands in his son's soft, blonde hair. "I probably shouldn't be saying this," he murmured. "…and despite thinking it myself, I don't strictly approve but I think that Scott and I feel the same."

Scott nodded gently and leant forwards to rest his hand supportively against John's back. "Dad's right," he whispered. "…and so are you. James Taster was sick. He was in constant pain, drugged out of his mind and he flipped. Someone…his doctors, the hospital…maybe even Lauren herself…someone should have done something to help him before that happened but, for whatever reason, no-one did. The results were catastrophic, for everyone concerned; James, Lauren and Rosie...Tom Stewart, Mrs Taster…they were all affected in different ways...ways which remained with them, and continued to affect them, for the rest of their lives."

John nodded but made no moves to remove his face from its hiding place against Jeff's shirt. Scott gently stroked back and forth across the small of John's back. "That's why Rosie would never let you into her apartment and why she would never come into yours. It's why you had to sleep on the couch when Rosie first moved to New Zealand and, ultimately, it's why she ran when she found out she was pregnant."

John hauled himself upright and stared at Scott. "What?" he asked. "Wh-wh…damn, she really did record _everything_."

Scott bit his lip to stop himself smiling at John's discomfiture. "She did," he replied softly. "I know how much courage it took on Rosie's part to let you stay in the house overnight for the first time. You were equivalently sleeping smack-bang in the middle of her escape route to the outside world and I...well, I think that was incredibly brave of her."

John let out a sigh. "I knew she was nervous," he murmured. "…wary even but I never pressured her to let me stay. I always offered to stay somewhere nearby and I always did until she moved there. Something changed when she left the US; it was like she…like she relaxed a little once she had space to move, to stretch out, to…" John held his hands up hopelessly. "…to breathe, almost."

Scott nodded. "I think she was far enough away from everything that had ever hurt her that she could finally start to live again. She was out from the constraints of the school system, away from the social workers, teachers and anyone who had 'interfered' with her life in the past. The neighbour who she'd ended up living with passed away during her last year at Harvard and there was nothing, and no-one, to keep her in America once you moved away."

"I suppose I wasn't around a lot, even when I was only training," John agreed softly. "We phoned each other all the time so I suppose it didn't really matter where she was living in that respect and the extra few hours on top of each plane journey really didn't make a whole heap of difference to the number of times that I visited. I didn't query the sleeping-on-the-couch thing because, honestly, it was _her_ house…_her_ home; not mine."

Jeff rubbed John's arm. "I wouldn't have expected anything else from you, John. I know it's been said before but you have a gentle soul. It's something you share with Virgil. It's probably one of the things that initially attracted Rosie to you and I would say it's almost definitely one of the things which kept her with you for so many years."

"That and the fact that John moves slowly through life," Scott added. "It's part and parcel of who you are, Johnny. Part of your job, hobbies, life…" Scott stopped and grinned at the frown that was beginning to appear on John's face. "I'm not saying it's a bad thing," he continued. "If you weren't so meticulous and methodical about everything you do then you wouldn't be able to do most of it. You can sit and watch and observe the same piece of space for hours on end and be perfectly happy with that. Virg could probably manage it but it's something that would drive me, Alan or Gordon completely nuts. You think things through before you do them and you generally move more slowly and more precisely than anyone I've ever met. That slow, calm and somewhat anal outlook in life is what made you 'safe' in Rosie's eyes. After knowing you for so many years she could read you like a book and I honestly believe that that's why she finally felt safe enough to…well, to…um…join you on the couch."

John flushed red and stared at the floor to avoid Scott's gaze. "She scared the living daylights out of me," he said quietly. "…the first time she appeared in the middle of the night. She was shaking so bad that I thought something had happened…that someone had tried to break in or she'd had a bad dream or…something. I couldn't get any sense out of her and then she wrapped her arms around me and refused to let go for the rest of the night. She bolted back up to her room as soon as it got light and didn't come out again until I knocked on her door to tell her that I'd made lunch. That was the first and only time I made it further than the bottom step." He risked a look up at Scott who was looking quizzically at him. "The bathroom was downstairs," he added. "…before you ask."

"Not my place to ask," Scott replied, equally as quietly. "Although I never realised that you never made it into the bedroom at all. I assumed that once…um…once you were…well, you know. I assumed that once that had happened that you'd have moved upstairs."

John looked at the floor again and shook his head. "It never really came up," he replied and then stopped and thought over what he'd said when Scott chuckled. "Get your mind out of the gutter," he grumbled. "The point about my moving upstairs never came up. Rosie slept upstairs, I slept downstairs and if she decided to join me then…well, let's just say that I never turned her away."

Scott looked apologetic for a moment and then grinned. "…and Jacob?"

John frowned again and reached out in an attempt to smack Scott on an unbruised part of his body. He hesitated a moment too long and found his wrist wrapped in Scott's only working hand. "Too slow, Johnny," Scott laughed. "Far too slow. And completely unnecessary...unless you don't know where Jacob was conceived…because I do."

John pulled his arm out of Scott's grasp and let out a loud explosive breath. "I suppose you do," he replied and then winced. "Working backwards from Jacob's birthday it must have been somewhere on, or very close to Waihi Beach when my lungs were still bad from that oil field mess. Rosie insisted I needed to be near the ocean so that I was breathing fresher, cleaner air than the really-not-all-that-far-from-the-ocean air at the smallholding." He paused and then smiled at the memory. "I told her that I'd flown half way across the ocean to spend time with her, lungs be damned, but she wasn't having it. We didn't go far…not far at all but we certainly found somewhere to stay that was right on the edge of the ocean. I…well I kind of rented out the whole place but there was only four bedrooms so that's not as extravagant as it sounds seeing as we needed two of them anyway. We had a room each, as was normal, although I don't think Rosie's room was used for more than a couple of hours in total. That was the only time we shared an actual bed and…Why am I telling you this? You…" John pointed at Scott. "…already know it all and you…" he pointed at Jeff. "Well, it's embarrassing and you don't need to know."

Scott looked across at Jeff as the older man smirked and patted John on the shoulder. "You have a son, John. The knowledge of that alone means that everyone knows exactly what you were doing and, more than that, they know roughly _when_ you were doing it."

John turned around to face Jeff with an unreadable expression on his face. "Who's said what?" he asked. "…and when?"

Jeff smiled sadly. "Don't worry," he replied softly. "It was a long, long time ago and it wasn't about you…well not really, anyway…" Jeff let out a sigh as he realised that he'd talked himself into a corner that both Scott and John would expect him to talk his way out of again. "I doubt anyone apart from Grandma and myself remembers this but I was hauled over the coals for the 'irresponsible' and 'sinful' act of getting your mother pregnant before our wedding night." Scott and John looked at one another and nodded as they realised this was probably the main reason for Jeff's regular reminders of the 'rules of conduct' where women, girlfriends or potential wives were concerned. "It happened again, to a point, when it became obvious that you were going to arrive so soon after Scott and after Virgil I was even congratulated that the message had finally 'sunk in' because, apparently, the gap between him and Gordon was far more acceptable. I held my tongue at the time but I've always regretted not telling the old busy-body that the main reason that Gordon's so much younger than Virgil is because I was sent 235,000 miles away when Virg was just six weeks old. I'm sure Gordon could have been started off in a lab somewhere, hell, I could have afforded that if we'd wanted to go down that route but the old fashioned way always worked well for us."

Jeff opened his mouth and then shut it again with a click. "You two _really_ didn't need to hear that and I'm sorry. How did we get onto that anyway?"

"John has a son and we know how, where and when," Scott replied with a grin which slipped from his face when he realised that they were about to enter what was probably the most personal, and probably the most painful, part of the John/Rosie saga.


	98. Chapter 98

~#~ (Chapter 98)

John sensed the change in Scott's mood immediately and reached his hand out to his brother. "We've come this far," he said softly. "We may as well do the last part. We're only eighteen months or so behind now. I'm under no illusions that this is going to be easy but I need to know the rest; I need to know for myself and, more importantly, I need to know for Jacob."

Scott nodded, closed his eyes and sucked in a long, deep breath. "After your break," he said slowly. "…you took Rosie home. You stayed a couple more days there before flying back here and then you spent a week here before going back up there." Scott pointed skywards which Jeff and John correctly understood to mean Thunderbird 5. "Hang on. Dad, I need the notes. If I get anything wrong here then it's all going to be messed up in everyone's heads forever."

Jeff silently handed the notes to Scott who nodded and quickly started skimming through the last few pages. John took the opportunity to slip out to check on Jacob and Jeff went in search of Kyrano and a tray of coffee.

Scott had finished with the notes by the time the others returned and the three took a moment to drink their coffees before continuing.

"OK," Scott said decisively. "So, you were back on Five, Rosie was back on the homestead and, from what I can gather, you called her several times over the next two or three weeks until one day you couldn't get a reply? Am I right?"

John nodded. "Exactly. Rosie was fine…or at least, she'd seemed to be. I assumed, at first, that there was a problem with her phone but as the longer it went on, the more obvious it became that it was more than that. Rosie knew my number and she knew that she could ring it pretty much any time of the day of night. I would have expected her to have made contact but she..." John let out an explosive breath and shrugged. "…well…didn't. She'd dropped and broken her phone in the past and she called me from the shop as soon as she got the new one activated. We called one another every couple of days and she knew I'd have been trying to get through and that I'd have been worried when I couldn't." John stopped and shook his head. "I'm rambling, aren't I? I'm sorry. Anyway, I couldn't get through by any of the obvious means, phone, email, that sort of thing. There hadn't been any storms near the smallholding, there'd been no tsunami warnings, forest fires or anything else that would have meant she'd been evacuated so I was pretty much stuck until I could get back down and go over there. When Alan got sick and I couldn't come down I thought about asking you," John flushed slightly and nodded at Scott. "But I didn't. Partly because I didn't know how Rosie would react to me sending someone out to check up on her and partly because I wasn't one hundred percent sure that there was anything wrong. We'd had such a good time before I went up, we'd been like…well, like a proper couple for the first time and I thought Rosie was as happy about that as I'd been. I really couldn't see how anything could have changed in such a short time but I guess I was mistaken…" John gave the others a sad smile. "Badly mistaken."

"You weren't to know," Jeff murmured. "…and from what we've learnt this afternoon, it would have probably been disastrous to send Scott over there to 'check-up' on Rosie anyway. I can't imagine that she would have appreciated a virtual stranger, and a man at that, turning up on her doorstep unannounced."

John shook his head. "She certainly wouldn't have let you in," he replied softly. "More likely it would have scared her and she just wouldn't have come to the door. The smallholding was quiet and out of the way; it was far enough from its neighbours to keep it private and it was well away from the road so people didn't turn up there by accident. The post box was at the end of the drive so theoretically no-one would come to the door and that's the way Rosie liked it."

"That's what I mean," Jeff agreed with a nod. "Scott turning up with no warning wouldn't have gone down well at all. It would have scared her and in her condition, who knows what else it might have done."

John paled slightly at this. "I…um…" he frowned and then looked at Scott. "Do you know if there was a problem with the phone at all? Did Rosie know I was trying to contact her or were my calls and emails not getting that far?"

Scott smiled sadly. "She knew," he replied. "There were little 'John tried to call again' notes in the book. Rosie also referred to it in one of the letters to you and said that she wishes she'd had the courage to answer your call when she had the chance. In another of them she acknowledged that she'd never be brave enough to post the letters to you but hoped that someday, somehow, you would get to read them and that you'd understand. She loved you, Johnny. She loved you a lot but there was no way she was ever going to risk letting you get close to, or live with, her child. I think she knew, deep down, that you'd never have done anything to hurt either herself or Jacob but…well…" Scott put the notes down on his knee, sighed and reached up to pinch the bridge of his nose. "Do you remember me saying that Rosie had been put on anti-depressants after her mother died?"

John frowned slightly and then nodded. "Yes," he replied. "Why?"

"She never came off them," Scott explained quietly. "…until she realised that Jacob was on his way when she simply stopped taking them. Completely. No gradual lessening of the dose, no taking advice from a doctor about changing to a different or 'safer' drug, she literally just stopped taking them and it affected her, quite noticeably. Her diary entries started getting confused and mixed up, especially at first. She became worried and panicky and eventually the worry about you, the baby, the future and everything else was controlling her every waking thought. That's when she ran. She packed her diaries, photos, ID and what clothes she could carry, into a couple of bags and she literally fled. I suppose the bond on the smallholding must have taken care of any unpaid rent and clearance of…well, whatever she'd left behind. She drove to Tauranga, dumped her car and then paid her way onto a freighter to Sydney. She bought another car, with cash, in Sydney and spent the next few months travelling down Australia in short spurts, mainly sleeping in the car but occasionally renting whatever accommodation she could find for anywhere between a week and a month. She didn't seem to have a particular destination in mind, or at least if she did then she didn't write it down. Towards the end of the pregnancy she couldn't really sleep in the car so spent some time in a refuge for women who'd suffered from domestic violence. The women there were nice to her; they were caring and kind and actually managed to get her back onto some sort of medication before she left."

Scott stopped again and held his hand out to John who gripped it gently. "This is where the diaries were essential," he said softly. "…because, at first, I didn't understand why she left the refuge at all. She could have stayed where she was until after Jacob was born and someone would have been on hand 24/7 to help her get to grips with motherhood. From what I can gather, once she was stable, settled and had recovered from the birth, they would have helped her find somewhere to live and would have then stayed in touch in case their help was needed in the future."

Scott shrugged his right shoulder and smiled sadly. "Instead she chose to risk both her life and Jacob's, by getting on a plane and flying over to Tasmania...all because some well-meaning refuge worker suggested contacting you to arrange maintenance or child support or…whatever it is they call it nowadays. The refuge on the mainland was part of a big charity. They would have been able to contact you from a generic location and then gather the money and distribute it to Rosie and Jacob without you ever knowing exactly where they were. Rosie knew that there was no way you would have left it at that. She knew that you would have wanted contact with her and Jacob but because of her past she couldn't let you have it. That's why she left. She moved away from the refuge that knew too much about you and moved into one that knew nothing about you at all. She made herself ill in the process and put both herself and Jacob at risk but by doing so she virtually guaranteed that you would never find either of them."

"It's the reason you were 'dead' on the birth certificate, Johnny." Scott frowned slightly and shook his head as he realised he was getting ahead of himself. "As you know, from when you flicked through the book, Rosie covered her baby bump with baggy clothes and she flew from Melbourne to Devonport. It's only a short hop on the plane but it upset her or Jacob or…um…both of them and within hours she was in a new refuge being poked, prodded and scanned." Scott looked from John to Jeff and then back again. "Just about the first thing she told the new place, other than her due date, was that you were dead. She was taken in, cared for and the next day Jacob was born. Rosie gave the authorities your name for the birth certificate but left you as 'deceased' so as to stay hidden." Scott paused and looked up at John again. "Is this making sense? I know it's all a bit jumbled up but so were the diaries and letters. Rosie was confused and unsure of what she needed to do and where she needed to be. She had no stability at a time in her life where she needed it the most and then suddenly, a week or so before she expected it, she had a whole new little person to look after. She didn't handle it well at all and it was obvious from the diaries that her head was all over the place for a couple of months. She wrote you a lot of the letters during those few months with, apparently, no intention of ever posting them and she wrote random and sporadically in her books. She became paranoid and worried that someone was going to hurt Jacob or take him away from her and it took a lot of coaxing from the refuge staff to get her to see a doctor."

Scott sighed heavily. "It took several attempts to find a medication that suited her but once they did Rosie stabilised and threw herself headlong into caring for Jacob. She took over his care completely and was eventually confident enough to go it alone. She bought a car, moved down to Hobart and aimed to start afresh in the relative anonymity of a largish city. She intended to try and find a job down there but then realised that she couldn't because it would have meant leaving Jacob with someone while she was at work. She rented out the apartment, giving a couple of months rent in advance and spent virtually everything she had on furnishing it. She left herself just enough to live on for a few months but was starting to worry in the last few weeks as to how she was going to fuel the car or pay the rent. She'd applied for financial aid but was getting very frustrated having not receiving a reply from anyone about it."

Scott sighed again and leant back in his chair, stretching his legs out in front of himself. "That's about it," he said softly. "The entry from the night before the crash was pretty normal, just a general rundown of the day and a bit of a rant about the guy upstairs who was playing his music too loud. She hadn't written anything the next morning so I couldn't tell you where she was heading to, or coming from, when the accident happened and...well, I don't really think there's anything more I can tell you. The diaries were pretty comprehensive, although occasionally confused. Rosie was messed up and, honestly, I don't think you did anything wrong."


	99. Chapter 99

~#~ (Chapter 99)

It was a quiet and thoughtful John who took a sleeping Jacob from Gordon and disappeared with him into their suite of rooms. Neither was seen for the rest of the afternoon and eventually Scott was forced to go in and retrieve them both when Kyrano started to lay the table for dinner.

~#~

John remained quiet and overly protective of Jacob for the next couple of days. Jeff and Scott kept a watchful eye on him and made sure the others gave him the time and space to work through his thoughts. Gordon asked John if he would like some time alone but then worriedly reported back to Scott that his offer to look after Jacob had been turned down.

Scott took to watching his brother even more closely and eventually realised that the only time he was leaving Jacob with someone else was when he was manning 5b. Scott discussed this with Jeff who had noticed the same thing and commented that, even when he was working downstairs, John tended to appear in the house at random intervals to check on his son.

~#~

It was one morning, almost a week after discussing the diaries, when Jeff finally decided that enough was enough. Ruth was looking after a contented Jacob while John was supposedly down in 5b but the space monitor had been unable to settle downstairs and was hovering nearby with his mobile console.

Jeff sighed and walked quietly from his office. "John," he murmured as he sidled up beside his son. "John, you can't keep going like this or you're going to end up making yourself sick. Jacob's safe and happy with your grandmother so please, leave him be for a few moments and come with me." Jeff paused and waited for some sort of acknowledgement from his troubled son and frowned slightly when John remained in his motionless position against the wall.

John jumped slightly as Jeff's hand settled on his shoulder. He craned his neck around and looked at his father with a puzzled look on his face. "What?"

Jeff smiled gently as he realised that John hadn't heard a word that he'd said. "Come with me," he repeated quietly. "Jacob's fine but I'm worried about you, so please, come with me."

John shook his head and held up the mobile console which Jeff immediately confiscated. "Don't worry about that," he said firmly. "We'll rehome it on the way."

Jeff tugged gently on his son's arm but found that once he was moving John was quite malleable and went unresistingly in whichever direction he was pointed. Jeff pushed him gently through the doors and down the steps past the poolside loungers where he dropped the mobile console unceremoniously into Scott's lap. "Look after that," he said. "Your brother and I are going for a walk."

Scott pushed his sunglasses away from his eyes, squinted up at his father and then glanced at John who was slowly wandering away. "Oookay," he said slowly. "I think that's probably a good idea. Are you taking him up to the clearing?"

Jeff nodded and met Scott's worried gaze. "Yes," he replied. "...so we could be gone a while. Would you mind checking on your grandmother from time to time...just so I can reassure someone..." Jeff nodded in John's direction and then sighed when he realised that John had ground to a halt at the intersection between two paths and was standing there looking lost. "Just keep your eye on the baby. If John knows you're looking out for him then I might just keep him up there long enough to open up. He clearly isn't coping well with what he heard the other afternoon and if I can get him to at least talk about it then...well, we'll see what happens."

Scott nodded and hooked the handle of 5b's mobile console over the back of his sun lounger so it was resting near to his left ear. He dropped his glasses back into position and leaned back with a sigh. "Good luck," he murmured. "I have a feeling you're going to need it. Don't worry about anything here; I've got the house, the birds and the baby. You and Johnny take as long as you need."

"Yes, sir," Jeff chuckled. "Will do. I'll be in touch." He turned and headed slowly in John's direction and then pushed him gently in the direction of the right hand fork of the path.

John looked up from the floor and smiled sadly when he realised where they were headed. "I thought about taking Jacob up there," he whispered. "...but he's too little to understand it at the moment. I think I need to wait until he's old enough to appreciate the significance of the place, so he knows that it's special and that it doesn't become 'just another part of the island' to him. Does that make sense?"

Jeff nodded. "It does," he replied. "...and I agree. The clearing's special to everyone and I hope it will become so to Jacob as well. It's something I've been thinking about, something that I want to suggest to you but...let's talk about it once we're there. OK?"

John smiled softly and headed up the path away from his father. Jeff fell in behind him and not long afterwards the pair were pushing their way through the tall gate that protected the clearing from the worst of the weather outside.

"Hi Mama," John whispered as he walked up and laid his hand on the huge lump of carved granite which served as the island's memorial to Lucille Tracy, Jeff's late wife and the boy's beloved mother. Lucille herself had been laid to rest in the churchyard of the small Kansas town where she and Jeff had grown up and had, for obvious reasons, been left behind when Jeff had moved the family to the island. Kyrano had come up with the idea of a memorial spot, somewhere quiet that Jeff and the boys could go and sit and feel near to Lucille. He had discussed it at length with Onaha before suggesting it to Ruth who then carefully picked her moment to broach the idea to her son. Jeff had, surprisingly, been very supportive of the idea and made many of the arrangements himself, including the design, wording and delivery of the stone which John had just addressed.

John ran his fingertips lightly across the photograph of Lucille that had been inlaid at an angle near the top of the stone. "I know I've spoken to you but I'm sorry I haven't been to visit recently. I've…we've…it's all been a bit crazy. Jacob's gorgeous and everything but he's totally tipped my world on its axis. I'm not up on Five any more, I'm…well, I'm down _in_ Five now instead." John let out a chuff of laughter. "See, I told you he'd turned my world upside down. What used to be up is now down, what used to be space is now earth…literally, outside my new Five is…well…earth, rock, substrata…whatever. I wouldn't go back to how it was before though, not now I've got Jacob in my life. He's…he's like my new little Alan but he's…" John paused and sucked in a ragged breath. "…well, he's actually mine this time. He's mine and Rosie's and I know everyone's going to help but…"

John stopped, lifted his hand from the stone and turned to Jeff. "How did you do it?" he asked. "How did you do it alone? And with five of us to care for?"

Jeff smiled sadly. "I was never alone," he replied softly. "…not really. Grandma was always there and we had Penny, Parker and a whole heap of neighbours who would bend over backwards to help out with you all. I even had that God-damn useless au pair for a while but I'd rather not remember how that turned out."

John snorted quietly. "Angelique," he murmured. "Yeah, best to not go there, eh."

"Would have been best if Scott had thought that too," Jeff grumbled. "I'm just glad that Mother had her suspicions and decided to follow them when she did. Scott understands now but I know he didn't see it the same way at the time."

"Especially not after you took away his driving privileges," John agreed. "I would have loved to have seen his face when Grandma dragged him out the back of that car. I'm surprised he didn't just die right then and there in front of everybody."

"Hmmm," Jeff nodded. "Well. He should have made his plans better if he wanted to get one over Mother. I'm just thankful they hadn't got too far before she finally caught up with them."

John smiled to himself as he leant against Lucille's stone and then lowered himself to sit on the grass at its base. He looked around to locate Jeff and spotted him sitting on the stone bench a short distance away. "And you seemed surprised when I asked you why I wasn't in trouble…back in the garden…at the hospital."

Jeff rolled his eyes a little and shrugged. "You know," he began. "If there's one thing I've realised over the past few months, it's how often I end up having a variant on the same conversation with any number of you at different points in time." He let out a quiet chuckle at John's quizzical look. "I spoke to you at the hospital, had a similar conversation with Alan and then came close to drowning Scott in Scotch when having a comparable discussion with him."

John's left eyebrow disappeared up under his hair as he processed Jeff's words. "That sounds…painful," he said eventually. "…and I'm not sure I really want to know how it came about. Scott and Angelique though, that's what started the 'no pre-marital sex' thing…wasn't it? I can't think even Scott had tried anything before then?"

"I didn't ask but no, I'm pretty sure he hadn't," Jeff replied with another shrug. "Scott was just attempting to make the most of an opportunity that had been, almost literally, handed to him on a plate. As I said, he understands my actions now…and he appreciates why his punishment was severe enough that the rest of you would think twice, or preferably thrice, before potentially taking any relationship to the next, more adult, level."

John nodded slowly. "That worked," he agreed. "…to a point but once we got to be adults in our own right it became sort of like an unwritten rule, that you and Grandma didn't find out about what we were doing...at any cost. That's the way I kind of understood it anyway, or at least that's how it was for Scott and myself. I don't really get why Gordon didn't feel the need to follow the same rules as us…maybe he felt he shouldn't, couldn't or wouldn't for some reason but…" John shrugged dramatically and dropped his arms to rest on his knees in front of him. "I don't know, I guess he was just being himself."

Jeff chuckled quietly and clambered up off the bench. He wandered over to where John was sitting and lowered himself to the ground, shoving his son across slightly so that he could rest his back against the stone at the same time as sitting beside him.

John watched as Jeff settled beside him and then removed his gaze from his father and stared out across the ocean. "I know why you wanted to bring me here," he said quietly. "Scott told me that you'd mentioned scattering Rosie up here. I…I've thought about it, on and off, since he mentioned it but I can't decide if it's a good idea or not. This is somewhere quiet that we can come when it all gets too much…when we just need…well, when we just need to get away from everyone, everything and each other. This is Mama's space; it always has been. It's for everyone and all of us and…and…do I have the right to change everything by adding my ex…um…girlfriend and the mother of my child into the mix?" John finally dragged his eyes away from the ocean and looked around at Jeff. "Well?" he asked. "Do I?"

Jeff pursed his lips together and let out a long, slow sigh. "I…" he began. "John, I just don't know. I hadn't thought about it like that. I know that Scott doesn't have a problem with the idea because, as you already know, I've discussed it with him. Virgil…well, Virgil doesn't come up here anyway so it wouldn't make any difference to him. I suppose we'd have to discuss it with Gordon and Alan but personally I can't see it being an issue. Jacob's not going to remember Rosie himself, he'll only know her through you, your photographs, your memories…and eventually, if you feel it right, through those diaries. Think of the times that you, Scott, Grandma or myself ended up at the cemetery with the little ones. When Alan would ask time and time again as to where his Mama had gone and how he would only settle once he'd been able to speak to her gravestone. I know he's only tiny but Jacob's going to need something…somewhere to go to commune with Rosie and I'm sure, as he grows, that he'll come to appreciate some sort of memorial to her. Whether that be here or…somewhere else…he'll need…something."

John nodded slowly and turned his gaze back out towards the ocean. "Now you see," he said quietly. "…_I_ hadn't thought about it like that. He'd…she'd…" He stopped and sucked in a loud raspy breath. "We'd need to get another stone but if…if we go that route then I wouldn't want to scatter the ashes, I think…I think I'd rather bury them. Do you really think the others would be…alright with her coming up here? Maybe…um…maybe over there in the little bit where that tree came out the other year? Then she'd still be here but well, sort of…separate."

Jeff looked across the clearing in the direction that John had pointed. At one edge of the almost circular clearing was a small bubble-shaped piece of grass that had been formed by the removal of one of the large trees around the area. The tree had been killed by a lightning strike a couple of years before and had subsequently been removed by Scott, Gordon and Thunderbird 2. Kyrano had attempted to transplant several younger trees back into the space left behind but had been forced to admit defeat as each and every one failed to thrive. He eventually settled on flattening the area, treating the ground and seeding it with a grass so that it matched the main body of the clearing.

Jeff nodded. "That might not be a bad idea," he agreed. "Then it'll be possible for you or Jacob to have some quiet time with Rosie but not be too far away from your mother…or anyone else who happens to be around at the time." He nodded again. "Maybe there's a reason Kyrano never managed to get another tree to take over there. Maybe…" Jeff let out a noisy exhalation of breath. "…maybe that was always meant to be Rosie's spot."

John looked from Jeff to the 'bubble' and back again and then smiled. "Maybe you're right," he agreed. "Maybe you're right."


	100. Chapter 100

~#~ (Chapter 100)

Discussions took place between Alan, Gordon, Scott, Jeff and John over the locating of Rosie's ashes within Lucille's clearing. As Jeff had expected, neither Alan nor Gordon had objected to the idea and everyone agreed to not mention it to Virgil until it was absolutely necessary.

~#~

Several weeks later, Jeff received a call from Penelope telling him that Rosie's memorial stone had been delivered to her home in Foxleyheath. She told Jeff that Parker had unwrapped it, checked the photograph and inscription and then rewrapped it and placed it within one of the stately home's many garages.

Jeff called Scott into his office to discuss how best to collect the stone even though he knew that by far the quickest and easiest way of getting it to the island was with Thunderbird 2. Virgil was unlikely to let anyone else pilot Two and Scott realised, with a sigh, that he was finally going to have to speak to his sensitive middle brother and explain about what was going to be happening in the clearing.

~#~

Scott bided his time for a couple of days until Virgil seemed in a particularly mellow mood. He had Grandma make up a picnic and then persuaded the artist to go for a walk with him so that they could talk without being overheard.

Virgil was instantly put on alert by Scott's somewhat unusual behaviour but went along with him anyway. The pair walked a fair distance around the island to a little cove that they often frequented when either one of the other was sick, injured or upset. Scott laid out a blanket on the soft, dry sand, threw himself down on it and motioned for Virgil to do the same.

Virgil shrugged and lay down on the right hand side of his brother. The pair remained there for a few long minutes. Scott lay on his back staring up at the sky and Virgil watched as a myriad of emotions run across his face. Several times, Scott opened his mouth to speak only to frown and clamp it shut again and Virgil was left wondering whether his brother was actually going to get out whatever it was that he wanted to say. He jumped slightly when, a couple of minutes later, Scott suddenly rolled over, propped himself up on one elbow and started talking.

Scott quietly explained how Jeff had taken John to Lucille's clearing and how he had suggested that John might like to set up a permanent memorial there for Rosie. He explained how he and Jeff had approached 'the kids' and that they had agreed to John putting a second stone in the ante-clearing that the missing tree had left. Virgil pursed his lips slightly when he realised that everyone else had been consulted with the exception of himself but eventually had to acknowledge that they had only had his interests at heart and admitted that he would have probably become upset during the decision-making process anyway.

He nudged Scott back down onto his back and rolled until he was leaning tightly against his side. Quietly he listened as Scott told him how John, with a lot of help from Jeff, had ordered a stone to compliment the one already in the clearing. Scott explained that the stone had since been completed and delivered to Penelope and Virgil let out a small chuff of laughter when Scott revealed that they needed to use Thunderbird 2 to bring it back to the island.

"All the fretting you've been doing for the past half hour has been purely because you didn't know how I was going to react, wasn't it?" he asked. "You didn't know how I'd react to the mention of the clearing, you didn't know how I'd respond to your suggestion that someone else took Thunderbird 2 to Penny's…basically you were either expecting me to blow up or shut down. Well, which was it?"

Scott let out a deep, rumbling chuckle, rolled back onto his side and hugged Virgil tightly. "I should know better than try and pre-empt what you're going to do," he laughed. "Throwing Thunderbird 2 into the mix was always going to potentially alter the outcome of the conversation anyway. You're going to insist on taking her yourself, aren't you?"

Virgil nodded against his brother's chest. "Of course," he replied. "I mean, who else would I trust with her?"

"You trusted Alan with her not all that long ago," Scott responded with a grin. "Oh wait, you didn't, did you? You entrusted her to Brains' tender ministrations and he handed her over to Alan without asking you first. You're not still sore about that, are you?"

Virgil had the sense to look abashed. "No," he admitted. "I had more important things on my mind at the time. Such as the physical state of your head and…"

"…the mental state of Gordon's," Scott finished. "Although I think you'll find that we both improved after a decent nap…or two, on Gordon's part."

"Your part too," Virgil reminded him. "Anyway, I don't really have a problem with Brains handing Two over to Alan for the flight back. It's not something I would have done by choice but Dad watched them come home and said that Two came in smoothly. He told me there was no obvious indication that I wasn't flying her, apart from the fact that he could see Alan through the window."

Scott jiggled Virgil slightly. "But you still don't want him flying her to Penny's," he pointed out. "Do you?"

Virgil grinned. "Nope. I'll go and get the stone, just as long as you don't expect me to do more than hover over the clearing once I get back here. I'm not…" Virgil stopped and breathed in heavily. "I won't be going up there myself, Scott. You know that…right?"

Scott nodded and hugged his brother tighter. "I know," he murmured. "Hovering above will be just fine. I'm guessing that, at the very least, Johnny, Dad and myself will be there to direct the stone into place and I think I'd rather it was you supporting it than anyone else. Apparently it's not quite as big as Mama's stone but it's still a sizeable chunk of rock. John wants to put the ashes in the ground beneath the stone itself so it's going to be a precision piece of placement on your part. Are you up for the challenge?"

Virgil rested his forehead against the soft threads of Scott's shirt for a moment and then nodded. "A slow, precision drop of a large rock onto a small and very specific spot," he said quietly. "Without flattening anyone on the ground below. I can do that…at least I can with Two. I wouldn't like to try it with anything other than Two…_anything_ else at all."

Scott's stomach let out a grumble and he chuckled. "I'm glad we've got that settled. The picnic was a diversion, if you hadn't guessed. It's a diversion that requires eating though. We wouldn't want all Grandma's hard work to go to waste. Now would we?"

Virgil shook his head. "No," he agreed, pulling himself out of Scott's embrace and reaching for the basket. "And we might as well make the most of it while there's just the two of us. There's been neither time nor a reason for coming out here recently."

Scott waved his right arm in a helpless gesture. "In a way that's a good thing," he pointed out. "…but I know what you mean. There's been little enough time for _anything_ quiet, private or whatever recently. If you don't include our hiding out in my room together, I mean."

Virgil held out a plastic tub full of small, cherry tomatoes. "That doesn't count," he replied. "That was convalescence. This is quiet…restive…"

"This was needed," Scott finished before popping a tomato into his mouth and then leaning over to grab a sandwich for himself and handing one to Virgil. "Eat."

~#~

The next rescue call was received the following afternoon. Alan, who was manning 5b at the time, contacted Jeff who then gathered everyone together in front of his desk.

"Scott, swap with Alan," he ordered. "Brains hasn't cleared you to fly yet so Alan will be taking One for us today. John, you can join him if you wish." Jeff paused for a moment when he realised that Alan was looking out from his portrait with a hurt expression on his face. "Scott I mean, John. You can join Scott, not Alan. Alan, I need you to get yourself ready. When your brothers get down there I want you up here pretty much immediately."

Scott looked over at John who was perched on the arm of one of the sofas with a contented-looking Jacob in his arms. The blonde shrugged, hurried across the room and the three disappeared downstairs.

~#~

A grinning Alan appeared a couple of minutes later. He walked across the room, clutched hold of Scott's candleholders and quickly span back out of sight again. A short time later the tell-tale rumble of the pool rolling back was heard and a moment after that Jeff gave Thunderbird 1 permission to launch.

Once Alan was underway, Jeff nodded to Virgil who leant against his rocket picture and disappeared down into the bowels of the island. Gordon followed via the passenger lift and a moment later Jeff and Tin-Tin were alone.

"Well, Mr Tracy, that's another rescue underway," Tin-Tin murmured. "Would you like some coffee?"

~#~

Later that week, Virgil and Thunderbird 2 were on their way to Lady Penelope's to collect the stone. Virgil landed Two in her allocated spot in one of the more secluded, tree lined paddocks behind the house. He and Parker carefully covered the large green craft with camouflage netting and then the pair made their way inside.

Virgil made his way to the sitting room and, upon entering the room, found himself enveloped in a tight, delicately-fragrant hug. "It's been far too long since you last came to visit me," Penny scolded him gently. "I've seen everyone else recently, albeit Gordon was only briefly, but I haven't seen you at all. How have you been keeping? How is Scott's shoulder and what do you think of your new little nephew?"

Virgil returned the hug and let a warm chuff of laughter flow against Penny's neck. "Whoa, whoa, calm yourself," he replied. "I'm fine and so is Scott, pretty much anyway. Dad had him manning 5b while Gordon, Alan and I were out the other day. That was…interesting, to say the least. I think the only saving grace was that Alan didn't have a working Mobile Control on site while Scott was ordering everyone around from the island. I can see why Dad did what he did, in regards to sending Alan out and putting Scott downstairs but…well, they kind of both wanted to be in charge which was…well, I said 'interesting' before and I think I'm just going to stick with that."

Penny let out a giggle and gently pulled herself out of the hug. She held Virgil at arm's length and studied him. "You're looking good," she said quietly. "Island life's been treating you well recently. I can tell. So, pray tell, what do you think of little Jacob. He's a dear little thing, isn't he?"

Virgil's forehead wrinkled up as he grinned. "He sure is," he agreed. "Got a good set of lungs on him though and he's perfectly capable of letting you know when he's not happy about something. He likes it down in 5b, just like his dad, he doesn't like the rescue alarm going off in the middle of the night and…oh, yeah, he loves…and by that I mean he absolutely_ adores_, Gordon."

"Your father said something to that effect too," Penny replied with a nod. "It seems that Gordon's found something of a kindred spirit in that little boy. Has John let him take him in the pool yet?"

Virgil shrugged. "I'm not sure," he admitted. "…but I don't think so. I know John's promised Gordon that he can but I think he wants to be there when it happens. I'm sure we wouldn't have heard the end of it if it had so I think we can safely say it hasn't."

Penny nodded. "That makes sense. Now, would you like a drink after your flight? I believe Lillian has been baking in advance of your arrival. If I'm right she's probably gone completely overboard as usual and I'm sure she'll keep going while you're here to make sure you can take something nice home for everyone on the island."

~#~

Knowing the strong bond between Penny and Virgil, Jeff had arranged for the artist to stay in England for a few days. The standard agreement for anyone visiting Penny in their birds was that if their machine was needed for a rescue then they would set out from England and meet up with the others whenever or wherever they were required. Two had set out from the island with both the Mole and the Firefly tucked safely inside it. These were the two most commonly used pod vehicles, followed, much to Gordon's continual grumblings, by Thunderbird 4.

Luckily the world stayed quiet so the sensitive, chestnut-haired Tracy was able to spend a couple of slow, quiet days filled with civilised company, good food and intelligent, stimulating conversation. John would have enjoyed himself but Gordon, Scott or Alan would have been climbing the walls to get out after less than a day. The slow, leisurely pace of life within the mansion was more than they could handle but was just what the mild-mannered Virgil needed on occasion.

~#~

A couple of days later, Parker helped Virgil to load Rosie's stone into Thunderbird 2. Virgil released the clips for the pod and raised the huge green ship up onto her legs, leaving the pod sitting on the ground beneath. He opened the pod door and motioned for Parker to wheel the pallet truck containing the stone up the ramp.

Parker stopped, just beyond the door and whistled as he looked around. "H'it looks like you've packed h'a little something to cover just h'about any h'eventuality," he commented. "H'although h'it is nice to realise that you got to stay h'a while without being called h'out. 'Er ladyship does so h'enjoy your visits."

Virgil blushed slightly and nodded. "I enjoy them too, Parker," he replied as he stepped up behind the butler, stopped and looked upwards. Two was still covered with her camouflage netting, way in the air above him and the netting hung down below the body of the ship like the canopy of a tropical rainforest. "Don't worry, baby," he said softly. "We'll get you back in the air soon enough. It's been a nice break but it'll be good to get home."

Parker smiled gently to himself but remained quiet as Virgil turned back toward him. The pair soon had the stone stashed securely inside one of the massive containers that were bolted to the floor of the pod. Virgil went inside to say his goodbyes to Penny and very soon he, and Two, were underway and heading back home.

~#~

When Virgil radioed the island to say that he was about to leave, the rest of the Tracy household was eating breakfast. Jeff left the table to speak to him, wished him well and then returned to tell the others that their brother would be getting back just after lunch.

The family finished their meal and started to leave the table. John handed Jacob over to Ruth so that she could give him a bath and then disappeared silently into the house. Scott and Jeff watched him go and then looked at one another with matching, concerned expressions on their faces.

Things were quiet until, a couple of hours later when Jeff entered his office and found the bottom drawer of his desk ajar. He pulled the drawer fully open, discovered that Rosie's casket of ashes was missing and immediately became concerned. His all-out bellow for Scott reverberated around the house and was quickly responded to by Scott, Gordon, Alan, Tin-Tin and, just a moment after his daughter, Kyrano.

Scott slid into the room a moment after Gordon and groaned at the now-open, empty drawer. "Where is she?" he asked. "No, more to the point, where is _he _and what's he done with her?"

"Who?" Alan asked quietly. "What's going on?" The youngest Tracy boy frowned and looked from his father to Scott and then around the room. His frown cleared when he realised that one of his brothers was missing and he nodded. "John?" he asked. "He's not here but then neither is the baby. Brains is downstairs so they've got no need to be down there but…" Alan looked across the room at Gordon, only to see his next-eldest brother looking as confused as himself. "Can someone explain what's going on. What's with the drawer? What's it got to do with John?" He gripped Tin-Tin's hand. "…and just who is 'she'?"

Scott sighed loudly. "_'She'_ is…or was…Rosie, Al. She was in the drawer to keep her safe and out of Johnny's immediate field of vision. I would hazard a guess that, sometime just after breakfast, our newly-grounded spaceman picked the lock of the desk and absconded with her. At least that's what I kind of hope has happened. Otherwise there's someone on the island that's made off with the pair of them...and that just doesn't bear thinking about."

Jeff rolled his eyes and then bent down and gently slid the drawer closed. He leaned down and pressed one of the buttons on the panel on his desk. "Brains," he said softly. "I have a pretty good idea but could you tell us where John is at the moment please."

There was a pause before Brains informed Jeff that John was in the clearing. He was alone and apparently unmoving although Brains confirmed that all his vital-signs were showing up as normal.

"Thanks, Brains," Jeff replied. "That's where I guessed he'd be. I'll take it from here."

Brains signed off the link and Jeff shook his head. "Gordon, Alan," he said. "Tin-Tin, Kyrano, thanks for responding to my shout but you're all free to go. Be sure to let me know if anything comes up but, other than either an emergency or a rescue, please assume that Scott and myself…oh, and John of course, will be unavailable for the rest of the morning. Kyrano, I'd like either yourself or Onaha to keep an eye on Mother for me. Just make sure she's not tiring herself out too badly while she's looking after Jacob."

Kyrano nodded and headed out of the room, closely followed by Alan and Tin-Tin. Gordon hesitated for a moment but a nod from Scott soon had him moving away.

Jeff sighed loudly and sat down heavily on the edge of his desk. "Scott, I'm going to need you to help me with your brother. We have a few hours before Virgil gets back and we could do with getting him at least part-way straight again before then."

Scott nodded. "I know," he whispered softly. "I should have guessed he'd try something this morning. I was watching him when you told us that Virg was on his way and he obviously wasn't sure how to take the news. I would have rather he spoke to me before going off on his own," Scott sighed this time. "He's been better recently but the 'confiding in others' thing still doesn't come naturally to him."

Jeff shook his head. "It certainly doesn't," he agreed and then chuckled softly. "Apparently, neither does asking for a key. I'd have given him the darn thing if he'd have only asked me for it. He didn't need to resort to…to…" Jeff shrugged helplessly. "…breaking and entering."

Scott chuckled along with his father before turning serious again. "Shall we go and find him," he murmured. "…before that overly-active super-brain of his comes up with the next great idea that will mess with the rest of his head."

~#~

John wasn't immediately evident when Scott and Jeff pushed their way through the gate and into the clearing. The grass in the area where Rosie's stone was due to be placed had obviously been attacked with a shovel, spade or some another garden implement and the soil was churned up and disturbed.

"Oh John," Scott muttered quietly. "What have you been doing up here, all by yourself?" Slightly louder but still softly he called out, "Johnny, are you here?"

Jeff stood beside his son for a moment before the pair turned back towards the main clearing when a scuffling noise sounded behind them. There was a sniff, followed by a wet-sounding cough and eventually John's head appeared beside Lucille's stone.

"Hi," he murmured from his spot on the ground in the sheltered area behind the stone. "I…I buried her. Rosie, I mean. I had to do it before Virgil got back. I knew you would have tried to stop me…or at least said I couldn't do it alone but…well, I had to…I had…" John shrugged and then unsuccessfully tried to clear his throat which sent his chest into spasm and before he knew it John had Jeff behind him and Scott in front of him, trying to calm him down. I…I'm OK," he said eventually, sagging against Jeff's chest. "Just…a little out of breath."

Jeff nodded sadly. He carded his fingers through John's hair to free it from the salt trails on his face and then placed a gentle kiss on his son's sweaty forehead. "I wouldn't have tried to stop you," he said quietly. "But I _would_ have told you not to do it alone. I would have hoped, after everything that's gone on in the past few months, that you would have come to realise that I…" He paused and looked over to Scott. "…we…we're here for you. No matter what happens, there'll always be someone there for you when you need them."

John let out a gentle cough and then froze in case it brought on another brutal coughing fit. A moment later, once he decided it was safe to move, he held his arm out to Scott who leant over and hugged him tightly.

~#~

Cocooned in the space between his father and his big brother, John finally relaxed. "Sorry," he murmured. "I know you're both here for me. I know everyone else is as well. Grandma, Virg, Alan, Gordon…"

"…Tin-Tin, Kyrano, Onaha and Brains," Scott continued softly. "…that's ten people straight of and that's only us lot on the island. There's more we could mention…out in the big wide world. There's Penny, Parker and Uncle Jo…oh, and at least two dozen women in the New York office that'd be more than willing to help you out with…well…anything, if you so much as snap your fingers."

Jeff's rumbling chuckle was felt by both his sons as he adjusted his grip on John so he could pull Scott into his arms as well. "That last one applies to all of you," he said, with another chuckle. "…not just John." He jostled John slightly. "You have a whole network of people behind you, willing to help out in any number of ways. If you need something, and I mean _anything_, then don't be afraid to ask. Even if it's only to ask everyone to go away and leave you alone. If you want people around you then that's what you'll have, if you want some alone time then you'll get that as well. If you want to be alone with Jacob then all well and good; if you want to sleep, rest or just have some quiet time without him then...just ask. Do you understand me?"

John nodded softly. "Yes," he whispered. "I understand. This…" he nodded vaguely towards the destroyed grass on the other side of the clearing. "…was something I had to do alone but yes, I appreciate that I should have told you where I was going and what I was intending to do. I…I just wanted…" He shrugged as his words petered to a stop and he sunk back down against the others.

~#~

Scott and Jeff helped John to tidy up the mess he'd made in the clearing. Between them the three men cleared the loose soil off the grass and found and relaid most of the turf that John had removed. They left the clearing looking as tidy as they could and then made their way back down to the house and disappeared into their separate bathrooms to wash up.

They eventually reappeared and met up with the rest of the family to eat lunch. Virgil disturbed the meal once again by calling in to report that he was thirty minutes away and then landed and walked into the room just in time for dessert.

~#~

No-one was in a rush to take the final step in placing Rosie's stone and allowed John to set a slow pace for the rest of the afternoon. Alan and Tin-Tin took their usual shift down in 5b which gave Brains time to go and tinker in his workshop. Virgil set about unloading and reloading the pods into their more usual configuration and, with the help of Scott and Gordon, got Rosie's stone unwrapped and loaded securely into the grabs underneath Thunderbird 2.

~#~

Early that evening, Jeff stepped out onto the sitting room balcony to speak to John. He had noticed that his son had been standing out there for a while and smiled when he realised that Jacob was clasped tightly against John's front. The little boy was facing outwards and was silently staring out across the ocean, blissfully unaware of the turmoil that was running through his father's mind.

Jeff cleared his throat to make John aware of his presence and then stepped forward and placed his hand on John's shoulder. "You've been out here a while," he said softly. "Is everything OK?"

John dragged his eyes away from the ocean and looked at his father. "Sunset," he murmured. "I want to do it at sunset. Would you be agreeable?"

Jeff shook his head. "I would," he replied. "…and I think it quite apt, if somewhat…poignant."

"It's…it's like the finishing of something. The…the ending, kind of," John stuttered. "I…I need to put this…that…Rosie…I need to put her behind me…in a way. I need to start looking forwards to what I've got rather than backwards to what I've lost. I…I need to move on. Do you get me?"

Jeff nodded. "And in the morning it shall be the start of a new day," he murmured. "Rosie will always be with you. She'll always be a part of your life but in…in a different way. Like…" Jeff stopped and shrugged.

"Like Mama," John finished softly and then leant back slightly until he was resting gently against Jeff. "Waiting together to meet us again…when our time here is finally done."


End file.
